France Telecom is selling its 20% stake in Portuguese operator Sonaecom to the affiliate’s majority parent, Sonae, in a deal worth up to 100 million EUR.
The move comes on the heels of similar deals the company has been making in the past by disposing its minority assets in Austria and Switzerland.
Under the put and call option agreement to transfer the stake, Sonae will be able to exercise the call over the next 18 months and the put will be exercisable by France Telecom during the three months following this initial period. They are both exercisable at the same price of 98.9 million EUR.
The price tag could further rise to 113.5 million EUR if Sonaecom participates in “a material transaction (involving Sonaecom or its material assets) that consolidates or restructures the Portuguese telecoms sector in the 24 months following the signature of the agreement.”
At the moment, Sonae holds a 53.17% stake in Sonaecom, which trades under the Optimus brand and is Portugal’s third-largest mobile operator after Portugal Telecom and Vodafone.
[Via: MobileWorldLive]