Naguib Sawiris, chairman of Orascom Telecom, said France Telecom has been warned that it will clash with the Egyptian laws and the Capital Market Law, which force it to make a mandatory tender offer. It is not a voluntary tender offer, and it has to be on the same price that is granted to us, LE273 a share. Sawiris' comments came after the Paris-based Arbitration Court of the International Chamber of Commerce sided with France Telecom in a 2007 dispute in which Orascom wanted the French Telecom to transfer its shares of Mobinil Telecom. In a phone call with Al-Masry Al-Youm, Sawiris said: "Before the court's decision, I sent a formal letter from Orascom to the French company. The letter was to stress to them that they cannot execute the arbitration ruling to buy Orascom's shares in Mobinil without making a tender offer to buy the minority shares of Mobinil on the same price that is granted to us by the ruling." "I did this to show goodwill towards France Telecom, but it seems that the French company does not want to abide by the laws and regulations of the Capital Market Authority in Egypt," Sawiris added.
Sawiris continued by saying that "the French company itself admits that I tried to negotiate with them and offered solutions, but they did not respond, either by approval or rejection. During negotiations, they welcomed the proposed options. After that, I was surprised by an attack on me and Orascom. "Any good businessman in such crises seeks to enter into dialogues and negotiations to overcome the crisis. However, the employee who manages the crisis in the French company is not at the level of what a large company, like France Telecom, is suppose to be at. In fact, they wage a war against me, as a person.
"I'll fight in any war to defend the rights of Orascom Telecom, especially as it has other shareholders and I will do what is in their own best interests," Sawiris said.
Sawiris uncovered that he offered two solutions during his negotiations with France Telecom. The first was to settle their differences with working in the current partnership. The second was to reduce France Telecom's shares in Mobinil to 50% in exchange for increasing the stake of Orascom Telecom to 50%.
Mobinil holds a 51% stake in the Egyptian Company for Mobile Service, which operates Mobinil in Egypt. Mr. Sawiris added: "During negotiations, I offered two options and asked them to offer alternative options, but they have not come up with any solutions so far."
On the other hand, a source close to the case said the current situation confirms that the judiciary will have the final word in the conflict, especially after the French company cast doubts on the integrity of Egypt's Capital Market Authority. "Negotiations are unlikely now, especially after France Telecom's successive strong statements against Sawiris and Orascom Telecom," the source added.
