The first round bids for the sale of energy metering firm Ista by private equity groups Charterhouse and CVC are due the week of March 18, banking sources disclosed.

According to the sources, the sale could draw interest from a number of private equity firms excited to do the deal following a sluggish mergers & acquisitions activity last year, the people close to the matter added.

Potential bidders for the Ista buyout include KKR, Blackstone, Apax, Bain Capital, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and Hellman & Friedman, the sourced said.

Advising on the sale worth about 3 billion euros are Deutsch Bank and Goldman Sachs.

All sellers and the bidding companies were not available to comment on the deal.