Orascom Telecom and France Telecom go to court over Mobinil

04 December 2007
Orascom Telecom and France Telecom will meet in court to settle a series of disputes over the Egyptian mobile phone operator Mobinil, which they both own.

Both companies have agreed to settle their disputes in the International Court of Arbitration, a body run by the International Chamber of Commerce.

In a statement, Orascom Telecom said, “Orascom has filed several claims against France Telecom and France Telecom has filed several counterclaims against Orascom Telecom. The parties have now reached agreement upon the three-member arbitration tribunal that will hear and determine the dispute.” Neither company revealed what caused the problems.

Mobinil has grown rapidly over the last year as the Egyptian mobile market liberalised in preparation for the launch of the third mobile operator Etisalat Misr in May this year.

However Mobinil’s profits in the July to September quarter fell to EGP472m ($86m), down from EGP516m ($94m) a year earlier as its costs rose.

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