Etisalat in exclusive talks with Vivendi for Maroc Telecom stake

Emirates Telecommunications Corp, or Etisalat, yesterday said it has entered exclusive talks for Vivendi’s 53% stake in Maroc Telecom as the Abu Dhabi telco posted a 6% rise in second quarter net profit, boosted by its international operations.

Etisalat has entered into exclusive talks with the French conglomerate over its controlling stake in the Morocco-based telco for a total consideration of €4.2bn ($5.5bn), which will be funded by external financing that had already been secured, the Middle East’s biggest telecom provider by market value said in a statement posted on the Abu Dhabi bourse website.

Etisalat, in a separate statement, said net profit after federal royalty in the three months ending June 30 amounted to 1.98bn UAE dirhams ($539mn), up from 1.87bn dirhams in the same period a year earlier. Bahrain’s Securities and Investment Co predicted a profit of 1.92bn dirhams.

Etisalat said total revenues in the second quarter came in at 9.88bn dirhams, up 20% from 8.25bn a year earlier dirhams, as revenues from international operations jumped 50% to 3.5bn dirhams and total subscribers increased 14% to 143mn.

Etisalat originally made a binding offer for Vivendi’s controlling stake in Maroc Telecom in April, having submitted a preliminary expression of interest in January. If Vivendi accepts the Etisalat offer, the transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals and the agreement of the Moroccan government, which owns a 30% blocking stake in Maroc Telecom.