France Tel, Sawiris reach accord on Mobinil

PARIS Feb 13 (Reuters) - France Telecom has reached a preliminary accord to buy out most of Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris' stake in their jointly owned telecom operator Mobinil, according to a statement on Monday.

The French group will then make a tender offer to the minority shareholders of the listed portion of Mobinil, known as ECMS, for 202.5 Egyptian pounds per share, the same price offered to Sawiris.

Afterwards, France Telecom would end up owning 95 percent of Egypt's largest mobile operator if all the minority shareholders were to accept, while Sawiris would keep 5 percent.

The agreement is subject to approval by Egypt's stock market regulator.

France Telecom's offer represents a 61 percent premium over the last price for ECMS shares of 126.06 Egyptian pounds. (Reporting by Leila Abboud; Editing by Christian Plumb)