UAE's Tecom bids $2.27b for Tunisie Telecom stake

Dubai carrier Tecom outbid Vivendi Universal SA for a 35% stake in Tunisia public phone operator Tunisie Telecom, an Associated Press report said.

Tecom, backed by a group of investors, offered 3.05 billion dinars ($2.27 billion) for the stake, against Vivendi's 2.76 billion dinars ($2.05 billion), to clinch the deal, the report said.

The report said the Tunisian government was expected to confirm the sale to Tecom soon after the auction, after receiving a formal approval from a government commission.

During the public session at the Communications Ministry in Tunis, Vivendi and Tecom representatives handed sealed bids to a senior ministry official who read out the offers, the report said.

In the previous round, Vivendi offered 2.44 billion dinars ($1.81 billion), while Tecom bid 2.37 billion dinars ($1.77 billion), the report said.