UPDATE 1-CenturyTel, Embarq plan deal close after FCC approval

*Sees deal closing on July 1

*Embarq shares rise 2 pct, CenturyTel shares up 1.9 pct

NEW YORK, June 25 (Reuters) - CenturyTel Inc (CTL.N) said it plans to close its purchase of Embarq Corp (EQ.N) on July 1 after the Federal Communications Commission announced on Thursday it was approving the deal.

Embarq Chief Executive Tom Gerke said in a statement his company promised the U.S. telecommunications regulator it would "remain focused on infrastructure development and broadband deployment" after the deal closed.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that the FCC had approved the deal [ID:nN24226333].

In October, CenturyTel said it would buy Embarq for $5.8 billion of stock and assume about $5.8 billion of debt. Under the deal shareholders of Embarq were expected to get 1.37 shares of CenturyTel for each Embarq share they own.

Embarq shares were up 89 cents, or 2 percent, at $43.93 after the news. CenturyTel shares were up 59 cents, or 1.9 percent, at $32.10. (Reporting by Sinead Carew; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)