Etisalat reported to be slightly ahead of Ooredoo in race for Maroc Telecom

Etisalat is reported to have offered a higher price for Vivendi’s Maroc Telecom stake than rival Qatari bidder Ooredoo, according to two people familiar with the matter, Reuters reports.

Etisalat’s bid needs further work, however, and has more legal conditions than Ooredoo’s offer, so Vivendi has not yet made a final choice, the people said.

"If Etisalat cleans up its offer, then it wins," said one of the sources, who is close to the process. "If not, it will go to Qatar, who also made an offer that Vivendi can accept."

While the exact prices of the offers were not clear, sources earlier told Reuters that they had come in lower than the €5 billion (US$6.5 billion) Vivendi had initially hoped for and closer to the market value of the stake.

Vivendi’s 53 per cent shareholding in Maroc Telecom is now worth €4.34 billion.

Maroc Telecom offers fixed-line, mobile and Internet services in Morocco and is one of Africa’s leading telecom operators, with units in Burkina Faso, Gabon, Mali and Mauritania.