Having already received approval from the European Commission (EC), Orange has also received authorisation from the Spanish Securities Commission (CNMV) for its €3.4 billion Jazztel acquisition, the final step needed for completion of the deal.
“The offer was initially made conditional on Orange obtaining all competition clearances from the relevant authorities. This condition was satisfied on 19 May 2015, when the EC confirmed the approval of the proposed acquisition, subject to certain remedies,” said a statement by Orange.
“The offer is conditional on shareholders of Jazztel holding in aggregate at least 50 per cent plus one share of the maximum theoretical share capital irrevocably accepting the offer,” the statement added.
Back in January, the EC had rejected a request made by the Spanish authority wanting to assess the deal.
The EC had been investigating the acquisition since Orange first made the bid in September.
Last week, Orange agreed to divest a fibre network with a presence in leading Spanish cities, as well as giving wholesale access to its 4G network, in order to gain approval.
Orange said, through the acquisition, it wants to “create the second largest fixed-line broadband operator and one of the most dynamic players in the mobile segment in Spain, thereby accelerating the movement of its customers towards convergent offers”.
The deal brings together the third and fourth largest fixed operators in Spain. In addition, Orange is the country’s second largest mobile operator, and Jazztel runs an MVNO.
Jazztel’s network covers 720,000 homes across 13 urban areas in five of the largest Spanish cities: Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Sevilla and Malaga.
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