Greece, Deutsche Telekom agree on OTEThe Greek government and representatives of Deutsche Telekom have struck a deal on sharing ownership and management control of Greece’s largest telecom company, OTE, an Associated Press report said.
The report quoted Finance Minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis saying that under the deal, the Greek government and Deutsche Telekom would each control 25% plus one share of OTE, while the German operator could also raise its holdings of the Greek company in the future.
Deutsche Telekom would pay €29.75 (US$45.93) a share for a 3% stake in OTE, which will allow the German company to extend its footprint in Central and Eastern Europe and win access to long-coveted markets such as Romania and Bulgaria.
“The Greek government will receive €442.3 million (US$682.9 million),” Alogoskoufis said.
Deutsche Telekom announced in March the acquisition of a 20% stake in OTE, Greece’s former monopoly telecoms operator, for about €2.5 billion (US$3.87 billion), from Marfin Investment Group Holdings.
Since then, Deutsche Telekom has been in talks with the Greek government to discuss raising its stake in OTE further, as well as the delicate issue of management control at the company and the final acquisition price.
