The US packaging group Owens Illinois has agreed to sell its 21.7 per cent stake in the Irish glass-maker Ardagh, as part of the European Commission approval of its £2.2 billion takeover of BTR's glass and packaging interests in Ireland and the UK.

At the current price of 190p, Ardagh is valued at £65 million and the Owens Illinois stake at £14 million. Market sources believe the most likely outcome is a placing of the Owens Illinois stake with an institutional investor, as no trade buyer is likely to be interested in a 21.7 per cent stake. To secure the EU approval just six weeks after the takeover being referred, Owens Illinois has agreed to sell one-fifth of BTR's Rockware business - a far higher level of disposals than the American group expected. The Rockware assets being sold are now being parked with Morgan Stanley, which will act as their trustee until they are sold.

The value of the assets being sold is about £400 million sterling, and both Ardagh and the Sean Quinn Group have been mentioned as potential bidders for parts of the Rockware business. Ardagh chief executive, Mr Eddie Kilty, has already said the group would be in the market for any Rockware assets being sold and, with net cash of £10 million and access to both borrowings and equity, it is in a strong position to make a sizeable bid.

Since Owens Illinois bought its stake in Ardagh, the Irish company has had a major boardroom shake-up which has seen entrepreneur Mr Paul Coulson take over from Mr Peter Murray as chairman. Mr Coulson's Yeoman International group has over 8 per cent of Yeoman.

Other board appointments included former stockbroker Mr Ray French who represents Flavius, the Mercury Asset Management vehicle which owns 29.9 per cent, accountant Mr Bernard Somers and Davy stockbroker Mr Brendan Dowling. The new board is expected to take a more aggressive approach towards acquisitions, and the Rockware break-up may be the ideal opportunity.

Mr Quinn is currently building a £60 million glass plant in Derrylin, Co Fermanagh - a plant that will compete with Ardagh on the domestic market and with the British glass-makers in the UK. There have been suggestions that Mr Quinn - possibly backed by a venture capital group - might be interested in extending its glass-making capacity further by buying some of the Rockware assets.