Brazil: Oi considers selling mobile unit to Telecom Italia

Brazilian telecommunications firm Oi SA is in talks with Spain’s Telefonica SA and Italy’s Telecom Italia SpA to sell its mobile network to avoid insolvency, Reuters reported. 

According to Reuters, Oi has been struggling to turn around its business since filing for bankruptcy protection in June 2016 to restructure approximately 65 billion reais (US$6.3 billion) of debt. 

Brazil’s largest fixed-line carrier expects to raise more than 10 billion reais (US$2.4 billion) by selling its mobile operations, according to two of the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks are confidential. Oi reported some 35 million mobile clients in its most recent earnings.

The company is also in preliminary talks with AT&T and a Chinese company, aiming to lure more operators that do not operate in Brazil yet, two other sources said. 

Full Content: Reuters

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