Tunisie Telecom will hold onto its 51% stake in Mauritania mobile operator Mattel, after reportedly failing to find a buyer.
News agency TAP quoted Habib Dababi, an adviser to Tunisia’s ministry of communication technologies, as saying the incumbent…
Tunisie Telecom will hold onto its 51% stake in Mauritania mobile operator Mattel, after reportedly failing to find a buyer.
News agency TAP quoted Habib Dababi, an adviser to Tunisia’s ministry of communication technologies, as saying the incumbent will continue to invest in its subsidiary but did not give further details.
Tunisie Telecom had been looking to dispose of its investment in Mattel to focus on its domestic market, where it faces stiff competition from the likes of mobile operators Ooredoo’s Tunisiana and Orange Tunisie.
Mattel is Mauritania’s smallest player, behind Mauritel and Chinguitel. Last summer media reports indicated that India’s Bharti Airtel, French incumbent Orange, South African company MTN, and Zain’s Inwi were all eyeing the Mattel asset. Inwi later denied it was interested in a deal.
Meanwhile, several parties have also reportedly been interested in purchasing Emirates International Telecommunications’ (EIT) 35% stake in Tunisie Telecom, which the government approved for sale in June 2013.
