Iraqi mobile operator Korek Telecom will decide whether to sell a minority stake to one of two listed foreign telcos over the next few days, CEO Humam Amara has said.
Speaking to the The National, he did not deny that France Telecom was indeed one of the…
Iraqi mobile operator Korek Telecom will decide whether to sell a minority stake to one of two listed foreign telcos over the next few days, CEO Humam Amara has said.
Speaking to the The National, he did not deny that France Telecom was indeed one of the bidders, while declining to name the second suitor.
He was cited saying that Korek was looking to sell a 35-49% stake in the company, which he valued at US$3bn.
The operator is the country’s number three player, having paid US$1.25bn for a licence in 2008.
Speaking to TelecomFinance last week, a spokesperson for France Telecom said: “I can neither confirm nor deny that France Telecom is in negotiations with Korek Telecom about acquiring a stake in its business…However, we [at France Telecom] have stressed that the Middle East and Africa are regions of great interest to our business, and our usual way of entering a new market is either in minority partnership with a local player [Tunisia, Morocco] or buying outright a new licence [Syria].”
Korek was not available for comment by press time.