Orange, the leader in the local mobile market, reported business volumes of 1.55 billion euros last year, down 1.2% compared to the same period last year. Although the company expanded its 4G and 4G+ coverage to more than 500 new settlements and extended its 5G network to 13 new cities, the number of customers declined compared to 2022.

At the end of last year, Orange provided mobile services to 9.5 million customers, fixed broadband to 1.1 million customers, and cable and satellite TV services to 1.1 million customers.

The figures are lower than at the end of 2022, when the operator said it was providing mobile services to 10.1 million customers, fixed broadband services to 1.2 million customers and cable and satellite TV services to 1.4 million. customers

4G and 5G network coverage has been expanded in the country

The operator notes that investments in network expansion continued last year, when more than 500 new settlements in cities and villages received access to 4G and 4G+ communications.

“98.77% of the population is covered by the 4G network, and 82.58% by the 4G+ network. In 2023, 13 new cities took advantage of the 5G/5G+ network, reaching a total of 38 cities with the highest mobile speeds of up to 1.5 Gbps,” the operator said in a statement.

The Romanian state will own 20% of Orange Romania after the integration of the former Telekom Fix

The end of 2023 was marked by the signing of an agreement between Orange and the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitalization (MCID), which announced the intention to create a single fully converged telecommunications operator.

Orange has reached an agreement with the Romanian government over the former Telekom Fix and will carry out a merger that will create a company in which the Romanian state will hold 20%, the company announced late last year.

At the moment, the Romanian state, through MCID, is a shareholder of OROC (formerly Telekom Romania Communications, formerly Romtelecom), and after the announced merger, it will become a shareholder of the resulting entity.

• “This deal is the result of Orange’s acquisition of a 54% stake in OROC (formerly Telekom Romania Communications) in September 2021. Under this new agreement, the two parties have agreed on a structure where Orange will hold 80% of the equity and 80% of the voting rights in the combined entity, while MRID will hold 20% of the equity and 20% of the voting rights,” the statement said. , sent by Orange on Friday.

Completion of the deal is expected in the first half of 2024.

Brief history of acquisition of Telekom Fix by Orange

Last fall, Orange, the largest telecommunications operator in Romania, completed the acquisition for 295.6 million euros from the Greek group OTE of a majority stake of 54% of the shares of Telekom Romania Communications (formerly Romtelecom), while in the Romanian state remained with 46%.

In order not to affect competition, OTE also bought 30% of Telekom România Communications’ shares in the former Cosmote.

The former Romtelecom has since received new management and operates as a subsidiary of Orange, changing its name from Telekom Romania Communications to Orange Romania Communications.

Orange Group aims to become the largest operator of converged fixed and mobile services in Europe and has announced that it intends to fully integrate the fixed operations of the former Telekom Fix under one company: Orange Romania.

This is only natural as Vodafone also fully integrated the former cable operator UPC after the acquisition.

A percentage of 20% for the Romanian state, applicable from 2020

HotNews.ro exclusively wrote in August 2020, before the completion of the Orange-OTE operation, citing government sources close to the operation, that the Romanian state, then represented by the Ministry of Transport and Communications, headed by Lucian Bode at the time, concluded an agreement in principle with the Orange group, according to which, after the acquisition and integration of fixed operations, the state will own 20% of the new company Orange Romania.

According to HotNews.ro’s sources, the Memorandum on the signing of this agreement in principle was presented at the government meeting that day, but the dates of this Memorandum are confidential.

The information was confirmed by government sources a year later, when the European Commission approved the transaction.

In March 2022, 6 months after completing the acquisition of Telekom Romania Communications, Orange officials acknowledged that there was an agreement with the government regarding the merger process, but without providing details.

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