Maroc Telecom poised to grab 51% stake in SOTELMA

According to the African Press Agency Maroc Telecom looks likely to win the bidding for a 51% stake in state-owned Malian telco Societe des Telecommunications du Mali (SOTELMA). Maroc Telecom is reported to have offered EUR250 million (USD332 million) for the stake, beating out bids from other operators including Portugal Telecom, Telecel Globe (part of Egypt’s Orascom Telecom) and Sudan’s Sudatel. According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms database, the Malian government plans to sell the operator will see it retain a 20% stake in the operator, with 10% and 19% holdings reserved for employees and investors respectively.