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Telecom Italia (TIM) said Italy's highest tribunal had ruled successful its favour successful a long-running concession interest case, confirming the radical is owed conscionable implicit 1 cardinal euros ($1.2 billion) to extremity a quality that has dragged connected for over 2 decades.
In a connection connected Saturday, the erstwhile telephone monopoly confirmed what sources had earlier told Reuters.
The reimbursement of the concession interest is expected to unlock a long-awaited program to person TIM's savings shares into mean banal and assistance the cash-starved institution resume dividend payments, which it halted successful 2022.
The conversion could already beryllium discussed astatine a committee gathering TIM is expected to clasp connected Dec. 29, 2 sources with cognition of the substance said.
The quality stems from the liberalization of Italy's telecoms sector. TIM sued the authorities to retrieve the licence interest it was required to wage successful 1998, the twelvemonth aft the assemblage was deregulated.
A little tribunal had ordered Italy's authorities to wage the sum to TIM, but Rome had appealed that decision.
The magnitude TIM is entitled to based connected the Supreme Court's determination is astir treble the archetypal licence fee, worthy somewhat much than 500 cardinal euros, owed to revaluation and accrued interest.
Italy's Treasury declined to comment, portion the premier minister's bureau was not instantly disposable to comment.
The ruling is not expected to importantly impact Italy's efforts to chopped its fund shortage beneath 3% of nationalist output, due to the fact that the authorities has already acceptable speech 2.2 cardinal euros successful its 2026 fund to screen nationalist and European Union litigation costs.
The payout gives CEO Pietro Labriola funds to property up with a long-standing program to scrap TIM's dual-class stock operation and signifier retired costly savings shares.
These shares, which warrant a minimum dividend, relationship for astir 28% of TIM's capital.
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