Deal: Etisalat To Buy Maroc Telecom, Largest Wireless Carrier In Morocco

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Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT), the Abu Dhabi-based phone company better known as Etisalat, agreed to acquire Vivendi SA’s controlling stake in Maroc Telecom SA for 4.2 billion euros ($5.7 billion) in the Middle East’s largest takeover in the telecommunications industry.

The cash transaction for the 53 percent holding includes a 7.4 dirham-per-share dividend to be paid to Vivendi, (VIV) Etisalat said today in a statement to the Abu Dhabi exchange. In a separate release, Vivendi said it expects the deal to be completed in early 2014, subject to regulatory approval.

The takeover will give Etisalat control over the largest wireless carrier in Morocco. For Paris-based Vivendi, selling its telecommunications assets is a key part of the company’s plan to transform into a new entity built around music, pay-TV, European cinema and Internet in Brazil.

Source: Bloomberg