PARIS, Dec 18 (Reuters) - French rail operator SNCF isconsidering using its pre-emption purchase rights on theEurostar train service to block certain bidders for the stakeput up for sale by its partner, the British government,according to Les Echos newspaper.
The paper said the British government was about to name ashortlist of bidders for its 40 percent holding in the servicethat runs from Paris and Brussels to London through the ChannelTunnel.
The stake went up for sale in October and sources have saidit could raise 300 million pounds ($468 million) for UK statecoffers.
Les Echos said one bidder was a consortium put together byinvestment fund 3i and Predica, a division of the bankCredit Agricole. A second has been assembled by theSingapore sovereign fund, GIC, it said. A Chinese bidder and aNetherlands rail business were also on the shortlist, thenewspaper said.
In October a person familiar with the process told Reutersthat the state-owned SNCF, with 55 percent of Eurostar, and theBelgian government, which holds the remaining 5 percent, haddecided not to bid. They have a last-look right which wouldenable them to offer a 15 percent premium on the final bid.
SNCF was not immediately reachable for comment. ($1 = 0.6416 pounds) (Reporting by Andrew Callus and Gilles Guillaume; Editing byLeigh Thomas)
3i Group (III)