Vodafone Get's Even Bigger

EllasDevil · 13-12-2005, 12:21

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Vodafone Group said Tuesday that it has agreed to acquire Telsim, the number two mobile operator in Turkey, from the Turkish Savings Deposit and Investment Fund ("SDIF") for a consideration of US$4.55bn.

Arun Sarin, Chief Executive of Vodafone, said: "With a larger population than every European country except Germany, and a penetration level of approximately 53%, the Turkish market represents a major growth opportunity."

In addition to the consideration price, Vodafone will be required to pay $0.4bn of VAT which will be recoverable against Telsim's future VAT liabilities. Vodafone expects to recover this payment over the short to medium term and this has been included in Vodafone's valuation of Telsim.

The transaction is subject to approval from the SDIF Board and Turkish regulatory, legal and competition authorities. Vodafone expects the transaction to close in the first quarter of calendar year 2006.

Vodafone intends to make a significant investment in the operations and network of Telsim to deliver a superior product and service offering to the Turkish market. Vodafone expects that over the short term Telsim will require approximately US$1bn of additional funding.

The acquisition is expected to enhance Vodafone's revenue and EBITDA growth profile, however Vodafone expects Telsim to make net losses in the short to medium term as it invests in the network, building scale and a stronger customer and brand proposition.

Consequently Vodafone expects the transaction to be dilutive to adjusted earnings per share in the short to medium term. The transaction is not expected to impact Vodafone's share purchase programme and is not expected to impact Vodafone's credit ratings.

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EllasDevil (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Fan Posts: 147 Join Date: 05 May 2004 Location: Greece Country:	13-12-2005, 12:21 LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Vodafone Group said Tuesday that it has agreed to acquire Telsim, the number two mobile operator in Turkey, from the Turkish Savings Deposit and Investment Fund ("SDIF") for a consideration of US$4.55bn. Arun Sarin, Chief Executive of Vodafone, said: "With a larger population than every European country except Germany, and a penetration level of approximately 53%, the Turkish market represents a major growth opportunity." In addition to the consideration price, Vodafone will be required to pay $0.4bn of VAT which will be recoverable against Telsim's future VAT liabilities. Vodafone expects to recover this payment over the short to medium term and this has been included in Vodafone's valuation of Telsim. The transaction is subject to approval from the SDIF Board and Turkish regulatory, legal and competition authorities. Vodafone expects the transaction to close in the first quarter of calendar year 2006. Vodafone intends to make a significant investment in the operations and network of Telsim to deliver a superior product and service offering to the Turkish market. Vodafone expects that over the short term Telsim will require approximately US$1bn of additional funding. The acquisition is expected to enhance Vodafone's revenue and EBITDA growth profile, however Vodafone expects Telsim to make net losses in the short to medium term as it invests in the network, building scale and a stronger customer and brand proposition. Consequently Vodafone expects the transaction to be dilutive to adjusted earnings per share in the short to medium term. The transaction is not expected to impact Vodafone's share purchase programme and is not expected to impact Vodafone's credit ratings.