The telecoms group Energis says it cannot find a buyer for its German business, Ision Internet.

This means that Ision will now file for insolvency.

Energis said although there would be claims from creditors, this was not expected to affect its UK business.

In January, Energis warned that its profits would be lower than expected and said it was in danger of breaching financial covenants.

Its share price fell dramatically and it has been struggling to restructure the business.

Energis said on Friday that the banks had shown "continuing support" for the UK business and were also providing funding to meet cash requirements.

It said talks for the sale of its Dutch business Energis NV were progressing.

Energis was spun out of National Grid in 1997.

At the height of the hi-tech boom, Energis shares were trading at 812 pence.

And they were worth 58.75p at the beginning of this year, before the warning about profits sent them tumbling.

By 1130 GMT on Friday they had fallen a further 5% to 2.15p