Brazilian telecoms operator Oi said that various parties, including Altice, have expressed an interest in its Portuguese operations.
The telco noted that the potential bidders have contacted its adviser, BTG Banco Pactual, to request information about…
Brazilian telecoms operator Oi said that various parties, including Altice, have expressed an interest in its Portuguese operations.
The telco noted that the potential bidders have contacted its adviser, BTG Banco Pactual, to request information about Portugal Telecom (PT) to potentially acquire the target or part of its non-strategic assets, according to a company statement.
Oi also reiterated earlier comments, saying that “it has not received any proposal for the sale, with an indication of amounts or not, of its operations in Portugal and that there has been no decision to sell these operations, or its assets in Portugal.”
Earlier this month, a person familiar with the situation told TelecomFinance that Luxembourg-based telecoms holding Altice was negotiating the acquisition of Oi’s Portuguese operations and had hired Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to advise it on a bid.
Subsequently, Oi’s interim CEO Bayard Gontijo reportedly said the group was not looking to unravel its merger with PT, although it could sell some Portuguese assets, along with other non-core operations, to reduce its R$46bn debt (US$19bn).
Oi’s CFO Gontijo was named interim CEO on 7 October, following the resignation of Zeinal Bava.
Bava, who was appointed as head of the Brazil-based combined Oi-PT business in June 2013, has been instrumental in facilitating the merger, further fuelling speculation that the combination could be undone in the wake of his departure.
