Orascom Telecom has a week to disclose further detail on the Mobinil deal reached with co-owner France Telecom, Egypt's market regulator said on Monday. The Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority said it wanted to know how the companies calculated a $300 million settlement fee being paid to Orasocm and an Orascom put option price. EFSA also wants detail on how the deal will affect management structure and how earnings will be accounted, adding minority shareholders also had a week to express their views. Orascom and France Telecom reached a broad agreement last month to end an acrimonious legal battle over Mobinil that had lasted years, and remain partners in Mobinil. Last Tuesday, France Telecom said it would pay $300 million to Orascom in a settlement deal over ownership of Mobinil, Egypt's largest mobile operator by subscribers. The companies share ownership of a holding company that has 51 percent of the Egyptian Company for Mobile Services (ECMS), known by its Mobinil brand name, while Orascom also has a 20 percent direct stake. The rest of the stock is freely traded. The put option, to sell to France Telecom only, will be valid from Sept. 15 to Nov. 15 in both 2012 and 2013 and will increase in value from LE 221.70 at the signing to LE 248.50 at end-2013 for ECMS shares. An Egyptian court last month upheld a block on France Telecom buying out ECMS shares at LE 245 each, an offer minorities were expected to accept, traders said in January. Less than a week later the companies announced a truce. Under the terms announced by the France Telecom neither company will transfer shares to the other and Orascom will not seek to increase its direct stake. The EFSA did not say what action it would take if it did not receive the requested information within a week and, as the companies had relinquished claims against each other, it would not appeal the court decision.
