Nokia agrees to Alcatel acquisition

Nokia has entered into a ‘put option’ agreement to sell Alcatel Submarine Networks to the French state.

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According to Nokia, it will retain a 20 per cent shareholding in the company, as well as board representation. This is to “ensure a smooth transition until targeted exit,” at which point the French state is planned to acquire the remaining interest.

Nokia describes Alcatel as a submarine communication networks leader, which is “well positioned to continue benefiting from the growth of the large and attractive subsea cables market.”

Discussing the move, a Nokia spokesperson said: “By divesting ASN - a non-core standalone business for Nokia – [it] can focus its network infrastructure portfolio on growth opportunities in its core markets. [It can also] further improve profitability of the Network Infrastructure business group.

“Going forward, Nokia’s Network Infrastructure business group will consist of three units - fixed networks, IP networks and optical networks. This is expected to reduce the net sales of network infrastructure by approximately one billion Euro but will increase its operating profit margin by 100 to 150 basis points.”