French radio group NRJ may be winding up to its first move into the UK radio market, according to a report in today’s Financial Times. The paper says that NRJ’s founder and chairman, Jean-Paul Baudecroux, believes he could teach a thing or two to the UK’s radio operators.
It speculates that Chrysalis Radio is the most likely entry point for NRJ, Europe’s largest commercial radio group. In France, NRJ is currently prohibited from making any more significant acquisitions due to ownership limits and so a move to the UK may well be high on the agenda.
Analysts at ABN Amro say that the UK market offers NRJ a slightly higher growth rate: French radio growth is expected to slow this year from 13.6% to 4%, whilst the UK radio market grows at 5% (down from 14.4% last year).
However, ABN says that whilst NRJ has little debt, its ability to raise cash for an acquisition is relatively limited.
