Batelco agrees to buy CWC assets in $1 bn deal
a market value of $1.53 billion according to Reuters data, also entered into option agreements which will allow the Bahraini firm to buy a controlling interest in CWC's remaining 75-percent interest in CMC for an additional consideration of $345 million.
"We believe this is a good deal for CWC," Espírito Santo Investment Bank wrote in a research note, claiming it provided a 40 percent premium to current valuations. "A deal like this has been perceived as difficult to execute due to the geographic spread of the assets. We are now more confident in management's ability to execute deals at good multiples." CWC's shares were up 5.7 percent at 0910 GMT, after hitting a two-week high, while Batelco was unchanged.
REDUCING DEBT
In a separate statement, CWC said the Batelco deal will cut its debt to $937 million. The operator is also in talks to sell a majority stake in Macau's largest telecom group. Batelco's home revenue may be in decline - it fell 12 percent in the nine months to Sept. 30, accounting for 60 percent of group earnings - but it is buying a CWC division facing similar difficulties.
Monaco and Islands had revenue of $586 million in the year ending March 31, down from $605 million a year earlier. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell over the same period to $186 million from $207 million. Monaco, the Maldives and Guernsey provided 90 percent of the unit's EBITDA in the previous financial year. CWC's effective stake in its Monaco and
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