Telecom operator Orange Belgium has signed an agreement with the Liège intermunicipal company Nethys regarding the acquisition of VOO, owner of the cable network in Wallonia and Brussels. Orange takes over 75 percent minus one share from the Walloon telecom company.
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Orange and Nethys had already started exclusive negotiations a month ago. Earlier this week, the board of directors of parent company Enodia gave the green light for the acquisition. The transaction values VOO at EUR 1.8 billion (for 100 percent of the capital).
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National Convergence
For Orange Belgium, this acquisition represents “an important step forward in the national convergence strategy,” the company said in a press release. The acquisition still has to get approval from the authorities, including the European Commission. That approval is expected next year. Until the transaction is completed, the two companies will continue to operate independently. VOO owns the cable network in Wallonia and Brussels. The company offers fixed and mobile telephony, in addition to broadband internet and television services.
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Modernization
Orange Belgium will invest in VOO, including in the modernization of the cables and the roll-out of fiber optic. The telecom company also points to the advantages for competition in Wallonia and Brussels and to the attractive prospects for employees. Orange is committed to developing WBCC, VOO’s call center, and plans to strengthen BeTV, it said. There are also synergy benefits, mainly because VOO used Orange’s GSM network for its telephony services.
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Nethys retains a minority stake in VOO. Orange now offers the intermunicipal company the option to convert this participation into Orange Belgium shares “to safeguard the development of VOO and Orange Belgium through further integration between the two companies”, it said on Friday.
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