Terra Peregrin, the Portuguese investment vehicle of Angolan businesswoman Isabel dos Santos, has agreed to change a number of conditions to its €1.2bn bid for PT SPGS, which has a minority stake in the combined Oi-Portugal Telecom entity.
Terra,…
Terra Peregrin, the Portuguese investment vehicle of Angolan businesswoman Isabel dos Santos, has agreed to change a number of conditions to its €1.2bn bid for PT SPGS, which has a minority stake in the combined Oi–Portugal Telecom entity.
Terra, which filed the offer on 9 November, had initially imposed that, should its bid be successful, the ongoing merger between Oi and PT would have to be suspended for 30 days.
This condition has now been removed, according to a filing on the Portuguese stock market regulator, the CMVM, earlier today.
Dos Santos also no longer opposes certain Oi-PT merger terms. These terms, which were revised in September as a result of Rioforte’s default on a €847m debt payment to the Portuguese operator, included that PT could exercise a call option to increase its stake in the Brazilian telco, only if it secured repayment of the Rioforte debt.
In her initial offer, dos Santos also requested that Oi does not sell any strategic assets, prompting the operator to label her offer as “unacceptable”.
It is unclear whether this specific condition has been removed but a person familiar with the situation told TelecomFinance that dos Santos is giving up on certain restrictions to show Oi and PT that “she is serious about her offer”.
The price may however be a major obstacle, as her €1.35 per share bid is lower than the company’s valuation over the past six months.
Her amended offer is also an indication that she is keen to take part in Brazil’s consolidation process as well as acquire Oi’s African operations, the person said.
Indeed, a deal could potentially give her greater control over Unitel, Angola’s largest wireless player, in which she already has a 25% stake. Oi is currently looking to sell its own 25% interest in the Angolan telco, which it owns via Africatel, but has yet to find a buyer for the asset.
Highly-leveraged Oi is looking to raise funds to pay down its R$46bn (US$19bn) debt and expand in its domestic market, where the company is reportedly preparing a joint bid with rivals America Movil and Telefonica for Brazil’s second-largest player, Telecom Italia-owned TIM Brasil.
Oi is currently reviewing a €7.03bn bid from telecom holding Altice and a rival €7.075bn joint offer from PE firms Apax and Bain for its Portuguese assets.
During an earnings conference last week, its interim CEO Bayard Gontijo said the company was in no rush to close a deal, a move which, according to analysts, is aimed at improving current offers.
