BT takes the reigns of Irish mobile operator

BT is to take complete ownership of Irish mobile phone operator Esat Digifone. It already owns 50.5 per cent and will acquire the remaining 49.5 per cent from Norwegian operator Telenor for about $1.24bn.

The transaction is part of an agreement inked between BT and Telenor in January 2000, which stated that BT would take control of the Esat Telecom Group for approximately $2.46bn. A BT spokesman said in a statement: "We are delighted to be able to take full ownership of a key challenger in the Republic of Ireland's communications sector and continue to develop our presence in this market. The cost of the stake in Esat Digifone held by Telenor was fixed early last year and is taken into account in our predicted debt levels for the end of the current financial year." The deal is subject to approval under EU Merger Control Regulation and from the Irish telecommunications regulator.