Compass, the catering group, is planning to sell the Travelodge hotel chain and Little Chef restaurants. The two businesses could be sold as a package for an estimated £750m. Whitbread and a number of... [more]

Western Power Distribution may be put up for sale. The US owned British company is valued at some £1.2billion. Potential bidders include YTL and United Utilities.... [more]

Thistle Hotels, which is London's largest hotel chain and runs 56 properties, is to be put up for sale. It could fetch up to £750m.... [more]

Charterhouse Development Capital is to acquire Coral Eurobet, which includes 870 betting shops, for £860m.... [more]

Alvis is to acquire the Vickers Defence tank manufacturing business from Rolls-Royce for £16m, which will involve the transfer of 1,300 staff at sites in Newcastle, Wolverhampton and South Africa.... [more]

Rowan Simmons, the relocation services company, has been acquired by Sirvir of the US for an undisclosed sum thought to be about £7m. ... [more]

Commodore Group, the operator of ferries to the Channel Islands, has undergone a £150m management buy-out backed by ABN Amro Capital. ... [more]

Marconi has agreed to sell its Italian defence communications business to Finmeccanica for £390m.... [more]

First Choice Holidays is to acquire Porter & Haylett, the owner of the Connoisseur holiday boating business, for £24m.... [more]

Taylor Nelson Sofres has acquired Svenska Gallup, the Swedish market research company with 14 staff.... [more]

Peterhouse has acquired AMT International, the Bedfordshire-based provider of management training in health and safety, for £1.7m. ... [more]

South Staffordshire Group has acquired Middleton Maintenance Services, the nationwide supplier of infrastructure maintenance services with 374 staff, for £15m.... [more]

Mentmore Abbey has announced that its Iron Mountain Europe records management joint venture has acquired the Data Services business of TDG for £6.5m.... [more]

Low & Bonar has sold Spila, its loss-making Italian plastics subsidiary, to Albanova, for a nominal sum.... [more]

Associated British Ports is to sell its Amports aviation services business in the US to Macquarie Global Infrastructure Funds for £32m. ... [more]

Bookham Technology, the optical components company, has sold Measurement Microsystems A-Z, its Canadian research business, to a management buy-out.... [more]

Elan, the troubled Irish pharmaceutical company, is expected to dispose of its non-core operations such as its diagnostics and drugs delivery businesses. The company is hoping to raise some $1.5bn.... [more]

Meadowstone has acquired NBS Pennine, the cast stone manufacturer, securing the future of about 200 jobs.... [more]

Project Telecom has acquired Ternhill Communications, the Shrewsbury- based mobile communications dealership, for £0.5m.... [more]

CSS Stellar has acquired Echo, the Canadian entertainment advertising and marketing agency, for £4.1m.... [more]