French incumbent Orange has reportedly made a €50m (US$57m) bid for Mattel, a Mauritanian mobile operator in which Tunisie Telecom has 51% stake.
Mattel shareholders, who have until 31 March to make a decision on the offer, have been hoping to get at…
French incumbent Orange has reportedly made a €50m (US$57m) bid for Mattel, a Mauritanian mobile operator in which Tunisie Telecom has 51% stake.
Mattel shareholders, who have until 31 March to make a decision on the offer, have been hoping to get at least €75m (US$85.6m) from the sale, according to business publication Les Afriques citing sources close to the situation.
However, the French operator is reportedly unwilling to improve its bid because it considers at least €25m are needed to take on the debt and improve Mattel’s network.
Orange declined to comment while Tunisie Telecom could not be reached for comment.
The Mauritanian carrier is the country’s smallest behind Maroc Telecom’s Mauritel and Sudatel’s Chinguitel
A year ago, Tunisie Telecom reportedly decided to hold on to its 51% stake in Mattel, after failing to find a buyer. The remaining 49% is held by local investors.
Habib Dababi, an adviser to Tunisia’s ministry of communication technologies, was quoted as saying in January 2014 that the Tunisian incumbent would continue to invest in its subsidiary instead.
In 2013, reports had indicated that India’s Bharti Airtel, Orange, South African company MTN, and Morocco’s Inwi were all eyeing the Mattel asset. Inwi later denied it was interested in a deal.
Tunisie Telecom has 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 Tunisiana and Orange Tunisie.
