UAE’s Etisalat Sees Fixed-Line Telecom Competition By Year-End -Document

Etisalat and rival du have been unable to reach an agreement over network-sharing in the UAE despite beginning talks in 2009.

Etisalat Given $500m By Abu Dhabi For Maroc Telecom Deal

Etisalat is 60 per cent owned by the United Arab Emirates.

Etisalat Scraps Buyout Offer To Maroc Telecom Minority Shareholders

Etisalat paid 4.14 billion euros ($5.7 billion) for Paris-listed Vivendi’s stake in Maroc Telecom.

Calling All Telecoms Firms In The Middle East

Regional telecom operators are grappling with new business models and growing competition. Enterprise provider SAP says it can help.

Qatar’s Ooredoo Signs $1bn Loan Deal To Repay Existing Debt

Ooredoo will use the new facility to repay a $750 million loan due in May 2015.

Saudi Telecom Sets Up $1.33bn Sukuk Programme

The operator did not say when it would issue the sukuk.

UAE’s Etisalat Bids For Maroc Telecom Minority Shareholdings

Etisalat bought Paris-listed Vivendi’s stake in Maroc Telecom last week for $5.7 billion.

UAE’s Etisalat Completes $5.7bn Maroc Tel Stake Buy From Vivendi

Etisalat has bought into Maroc Telecom through a separate legal entity, Etisalat International North Africa (EINA).

Dual Screen YotaPhone Smartphone Launches In The Middle East

YotaPhone aims to offer users a unique interactive experience with an additional electronic paper display.

Abu Dhabi Telco Etisalat Seeks Banks To Arrange Debut Bond Deal – IFR

The plan is to use bond market financing to take out a bridge loan signed in connection with the acquisition.

UAE’s Etisalat Expects To Close Maroc Telecom Deal On May 14

Etisalat has agreed to pay 4.2 billion euros for the stake.

Omantel Q1 Net Profit Rises 18%, Beats Estimates

Omantel attributed the profit rise to a 29 per cent increase in wholesale revenue.

Kuwait Zain Pays $12.5m To Up Stake In Bahrain Unit To 63%

Zain did not explain why it had done the deal but its chief executive said last year that the Kuwaiti telco wanted to retain majority control of the subsidiary.

Iraq Says Mobile Operators Can Launch 3G Services

Decision reverses an earlier plan to hold a multimillion dollar auction.

Turkish Airlines Records Over 25% Passenger Growth In 2013

The airline received 48.3 million passengers in 2013.

Etisalat To Sell West African Units To Maroc Telecom For $650m

The agreement is dependent on Etisalat’s acquisition of a 53 per cent stake in Maroc Telecom from Vivendi.

UAE Telco Operator Du Aims For Double-Digit Revenue Growth In 2014

Chief executive Osman Sultan was bullish on the company’s prospects despite a slow net profit growth of 4.5 per cent in the first quarter.

UAE Telco Du Q1 Net Profit Rises 4.8%

The firm made a net profit of Dhs490.3 million ($133.49 million) in the three months to March 31.

Qatar’s Ooredoo Q1 Net Profit Rises On Asset Sale

The telco made a net profit of 887 million riyals ($243.62 million) in the three months ended March 31, it said in a statement.

Saudi Telco Mobily Seeks 20% Stake In Landline Firm Atheeb

Mobily signed a memorandum of understanding in August with four of Atheeb’s founding shareholders to buy a controlling interest in the firm.

Saudi Arabia Starts Payout To Minority Investors In Ailing Telco

A royal decree last May ordered the liquidation of the firm, which never launched services despite making a winning SAR1 billion bid for a fixed telecom licence in 2007.

Bahrain’s Batelco Q1 Net Profit Rises 8%

The former monopoly made a net profit of 14.5 million dinars ($38.46 million) in the three months to March 31.

Oman Telco Nawras Q1 Profit Rises 14%

The firm made a net profit of 8.8 million rials ($22.86 million) in the three months to March 31, a statement said.

UAE’s Etisalat Signs 3.15bn Euro Loan For Maroc Telecom Buy

This loan is split between a 2.1 billion euro one-year bridge loan and a 1.05 billion three-year portion, Etisalat said.

Abu Dhabi Government Fund Backing Etisalat’s Maroc Tel Buy – Sources

The fund is most likely to be Mubadala, sources said, given that it already has telecommunications assets and an existing partnership with Etisalat in Africa.

UAE Etisalat Profit Rises As Revenue And Subscribers Grow

The telco made a net profit of Dhs2 billion ($544.5 million) in the three months to March 31, according to a company statement.

Saudi Telecom Picks Banks For Debut Sukuk Issue – Sources

The sources said it was currently unclear if STC was looking to complete a sukuk issue in the local Saudi market.

Kuwait Wataniya First-Quarter Profit Rises 1.5% Despite Domestic Slump

Wataniya made a net attributable profit of 19.8 million dinars ($70.3 million) in the three months to March 31.

Saudi Telco Mobily Q1 Net Profit Rises 4.5%, Misses Estimates

Mobily made a first-quarter net profit of 1.4 billion riyals ($373.3 million), up from 1.34 billion riyals in the prior-year period.

Saudi Telecom Q1 Profit Rises 54%

The firm made a net profit of 2.39 billion riyals ($637.3 million) in the three months to March 3.