Orange Eyeing More Acquisitions in Spain

                                   

France's Orange is reported to be looking at acquisitions in Spain as it seeks to join in the expected wave of consolidation in the local market.

Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg Newsreported that Orange is in talks with banks to prepare a bid for either Jazztel or Yoigo.

Orange is currently the third largest mobile network operator in the country, behind Telefonica and Vodafone.

Orange is said to be preferring a bid for Jazztel for its 1.4 million broadband customers, although there are concerns that the price may be too high. Vodafone was recently said to have put in a bid for rival cable operator, Ono, although it has decided to go ahead with a stock market listing instead.

A bid for Yoigo may also be possible, as its owner TeliaSonera had put the company up for sale, but cancelled the sale last year following a lack of bids.