Prasannkumar 
Vodafone and MasMovil agree to purchase MasMovil’s Portuguese unit Nowo
Portugal’s fourth largest operator is Nowo
Vodafone Group has reached an agreement to buy MasMovil’s Portuguese unit Nowo, a Spanish operator.
Vodafone will expand its operations in India through the deal. The deal is expected to close in the first half 2023.
Vodafone confirmed that Nowo is Portugal’s fourth largest operator with 250,000 mobile customers and 140,000 fixed telecom service clients.
Spanish newspaper Expansion reported that the deal would be worth EUR150million ($146m). MasMovil confirmed this number.
MasMovil and Orange, a French telecoms company, signed an agreement for a $19 million merger in Spain earlier this year. This merger will create Spain’s largest operator by customer numbers.
According to data from the Spanish competition regulation CNMC, Orange was the country’s second largest operator, accounting for around 23 percent of its market share. MasMovil is fourth with 20 percent. Telefonica is the leader with 28 percent and Vodafone has 22 percent. Spain’s main operators are in close competition for the market.
The merger is a trend in European telco markets, with consolidation a key theme. Vodafone UK and CK Hutchison’s Three UK could be evaluating a merger in the UK.
Vodafone has been trying to reduce its business over the past months. In August, Vodafone sold its Hungarian business unit for $1.8bn. Vodafone recently sold its Egyptian unit to Vodacom, in which it holds a large share. The operator is also reportedly in discussions to sell its Ghana business and operations to Telecel Group.
Vodafone also sold some of its operations to New Zealand, Malta and Qatar previously and is currently in discussions to sell its 21 percent stake in Indus Towers, an Indian infrastructure company.
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