Under the agreement China Unicom, which ranks second in terms of subscribers in the country’s mobile and fixed broadband markets, will acquire a 100% equity interest in Unicom New Horizon, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Unicom Group.
The operator said that it was acquiring the assets because the depreciation costs it would be subject to were lower than the leasing fees it would have to pay its parent.
The China International Capital Corporation (CICC) has been appointed as financial advisor to China Unicom and Rothschild has been appointed as financial advisor to the company’s independent board committee.
The acquisition is expected to be completed no later than the end of the year and is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.
The move follows a similar agreement by China Telecom in August to acquire the CDMA network it leases from its parent company for $13.3 billion.
