France Telecom - Orange: No decision to sell has been made, regular evaluation in progress

Following media reports saying France Telecom plans to sell its operations in several countries, Romania included, the company sent a statement saying it has no plans to sell its Romanian operations. “The strategic evaluation of the portfolio the group owns is not a new operation and it was mentioned before by Stephane Richard, CEO France Telecom – Orange, in February, when the 2010 results were presented. He then said an analysis will be made on the assets portfolio to optimize operational performances […],” the statement read. According to the group, after this evaluation, in the worst case scenario, the company has different options, which are not limited to selling the company. 'In the worst case, some operations could be sold following this evaluation, but at the same time, the evaluation could be the ground for consolidation,” according to Orange. The company reminded of the joint venture in UK, the merger proposition in Switzerland and the joint network use in Poland and Austria. “No decision to sell or consolidate operations on any European market has been yet made and we don't have any such project in the implementation phase,” according to the company. Original article: France Telecom ponders selling some European operations, Orange Romania included editor@romania-insider.com