Italy's Newlat Food looks at London listing of 'substantial' part of company

(Reuters) -Italy's Newlat Food is considering an initial public offering to list a "substantial part" of the company on the London Stock Exchange, it said in a statement on Thursday.

The group is set to change its name to NewPrinces after buying British peer Princes, known for its tinned fish and Napolina sauces, in May last year for 700 million pounds ($929.60 million) from Mitsubishi Corporation.

"We are in a very preliminary phase", Newlat Group's Financial Director Fabio Fazzari told analysts on a post-results conference call, adding that an IPO would be one of many possible actions the group is considering to "create value" after its recent acquisitions.

On Tuesday, Newlat signed an exclusive agreement to buy a plant in northern Italy from the world's biggest spirits producer Diageo, in a deal that will allow the company to expand its beverage offering and alleviate production constraints at its Princes Glasgow plant.

Newlat said it expects revenue at its food and drinks division to reach 3 billion euros this year based on acquisitions currently in progress, up nearly a quarter from 2.45 billion euros in 2024.

($1 = 0.7530 pounds)

(Reporting by Philippe Leroy Beaulieu in Gdansk, editing by Giulia Segreti, Kirsten Donovan)