Oi inks US$2.4bn deal for sale of controlling stake in fiber unit V.tal

Brazilian telecom operator Oi has signed a contract with GlobeNet and funds managed by BTG Pactual formalizing the sale of 57.9% of its fiber vehicle, dubbed V.tal, for 12.9bn reais (US$2.39bn), the company said in a market filing.

The deal is pending clearance by antitrust watchdog Cade and telecom regulator Anatel, which Oi expects for year-end.

Under the terms of the contract signed, Oi will receive the amount in installments to be deposited within three years, the first of which is worth 3.2bn reais. 

At the end of the process, Oi will retain 42.1% of the neutral, wholesale fiber company. Oi will also be the anchor-client of the new company. 

BTG Pactual won on July 7 the auction for the partial spin-off of Oi's optical fiber business.

With a market value of more than 20bn reais and 400,000km of network distributed in the country – a backbone inherited from Oi – V.tal aims to reach 32mn homes passed with fiber by 2025.

V.tal also foresees investments of over 30bn reais in the next four years.