Australian lottery operator Tattersall's could be the only overseas company to challenge incumbent Camelot for the next U.K. National Lottery license, which will begin in 2009.
The U.K. Lottery Commission released the official Invitation to Apply (ITA) on June 29 in London, and Victoria-based Tattersall's, which operates lotteries in four Australian states and is a partner in the South African national lottery, has confirmed that it is throwing its hat in the ring for the coveted license.
"We are finalizing our review of the ITA and providing that the review is satisfactory, we look forward to making our bid," Tattersall's said in a prepared statement.
Tattersall's is reportedly in negotiations with investment banks Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs over financial backing for the bid.
The group is already heavily staked in the U.K. market through the $12 million purchase of a 10.1 percent share of gaming firm Talarius Plc in November 2005.
Talarius operates 167 electronic gaming machine venues in the United Kingdom, with a total of about 8,000 gaming machines.
On its own turf, Tattersall's has been in merger discussions with Queensland-based wagering firm UNiTAB since March, but is currently locked in a battle with rival Tabcorp Holdings Ltd. for control of UNiTAB.
Tattersall's was planning a friendly "merger of equals" with UNiTAB, before rival Tabcorp stepped in with a higher albeit hostile $1.9 billion takeover offer.
A UNiTAB shareholder meeting to vote on the proposed merger, originally scheduled for July 6, has been postponed following an application by UNiTAB to the Queensland Supreme Court. The meeting has been rescheduled for July 26.
Other potential bidders for the U.K. license include the private equity house Terra Firma, Sir Richard Branson's People's Lottery and Ladbrokes, which is believed to have teamed up with Greek operator Intralot.
Applications for the license close on Dec. 15, and an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) decision is scheduled for July 19.
Tattersall's Chief Executive Duncan Fischer said the company's long history of running government licensed lotteries makes it a credible bidder for the U.K. license, and he is confident the bid will be well received.