KEY POINTS:
CanWest MediaWorks New Zealand chief executive Brent Impey looks likely to pocket $3 million from any sale of TV3 and half the country's radio stations.
As prospective buyers traipse out of the CanWest head office Impey, will be dusting off the details of the deal he negotiated when the company was floated back in 2004.
He is entitled to 2 per cent of the growth in the company's enterprise value - its equity combined with its net debt - between the 2004 allotment of shares and any sale.
The payment is separate from other remuneration such as pay and share options.
Impey would pocket millions if the Canadian parent CanWest Global Communications sold its 70 per cent stake. Based on the current share price of $2.30, boosted by speculation of a takeover, his payment would be $2.72 million before tax.
But if the takeover price goes higher he would likely get the $3 million maximum.
A CanWest New Zealand spokesman, Roger Beaumont, said the agreement was an employment matter and CanWest would not comment.
He said "several" parties had visited the headquarters and due diligence was "coming to a close".
But Beaumont stressed there was no guarantee of a sale after the separate sale investigation processes in New Zealand and Australia.
Australian media have speculated that the sale of CanWest's 56 per cent economic interest in Australia's Ten Network has been troubled.
But the New Zealand assets - including radio brands The Breeze, RadioLive, The Edge, The Rock and More FM - are likely to be more attractive to buyers.
Impey's deal is spelt out under the statutory information section of the initial public offering prospectus. It says that Impey is entitled to a one-time payment if there is change in control of the company before September 1, 2009.
Should the Canadian parent drop below 30 per cent ownership or if it is no longer the biggest shareholder or no longer has the majority, it would calculate the increase in the enterprise value at the time of the allotment, with the float price at $1.53 and a $200 million debt.
That puts the enterprise value at float at around $550 million.
Based on a share price of $2.30 and debt of $164.7 million in February, the current enterprise value is around $686 million. Impey picks up 2 per cent of the difference.
Based on figures in the CanWest MediaWorks 2006 annual report, Impey received $866,560 in benefits and performance-based incentives last year, as well as 200,000 share options, bringing his total to around 750,000.
In the money
* Brent Impey is entitled to 2 per cent of the increase in the company's enterprise value if it is sold.
* CanWest floated with an enterprise value of $550 million.
* The current enterprise value is about $686 million.
* This would give Impey a payout of $2.72 million, but this could go up to $3 million if the share price rose.
