Link to Google Translation : {http://bit.ly/NjZScH}
Link to Original article in French : {http://bit.ly/MGjXZP}
The construction group should submit a bid for the mobile operator within ten days. He dangled difficult to hold objectives.
Thursday, François Hollande returned from a trip to Nigeria before leaving the next day in the CAR. Between meetings, he received at the Elysee Martin Bouygues surprise visit. Not to mention the covenant of responsibility, but the excitement of the telecom market. Bouygues is accompanied by another patron, close to President of the Republic, François Pinault, who organized the meeting. The man who had saved there fifteen years, from the onslaught of Vincent Bolloré on his family group. The founder of Bouygues Telecom "sells" the president's proposed acquisition of SFR, sold by Vivendi.
According to one of his relatives, he is committed to François Hollande to secure employment while concerns are high on the social front. He is also the message that it is now reconciled with Vincent Bolloré, the largest shareholder of Vivendi today. A delicate encourage Elysee convince the Breton businessman to sell him the second French mobile operator manner.
Oppose the marriage of SFR with Numericable
This week, Martin Bouygues also met Arnaud Montebourg and Fleur Pellerin. The stakes are high: for one week, Vivendi discusses a marriage its subsidiary SFR with Numericable, which sells Internet cable. A cell of directors led by Henri Lachmann and Alexander Juniac (CEO of Air France-KLM), working on the subject.
If this is realized, Bouygues would find isolated against his nemesis Free and forced to ally with him. Unimaginable to the world's leading construction scenario. To counter it, the group is working these days in a bid SFR which is due within ten days, according to several sources. "We are studying all options and will inform the market when we have a concrete position," says a spokesman.
"Impossible without social destruction"
Bouygues rolls out the red carpet to convince shareholders of SFR. He promises them before any more money than 5 billion euros that Numericable dangled. Then a healthier financial position than its competitor, already heavily indebted, thanks to huge resources of his empire. And twice as cost synergies, punchline to the Exchange. SFR's network would accommodate 32 million mobile subscribers of both operators, ensuring economy of a billion euros per year. In return, Bouygues Telecom could sell his Free to not be confronted with the objections of the Competition Authority. Except for the operator founded by Xavier Niel can not see it that way. "Our network now covers more than 60% of the population and we have no interest to buy a whole," said do you.
On the social level, the promise of Bouygues not dismiss is not convincing. Combined with SFR, the new operator would count 20,000 employees and a lot of duplication of business functions, customer service, and administrative network. "It is impossible to make this marriage without social destruction," admits even close to SFR. The path is narrow for that does not disarm Bouygues. To attract the leaders of SFR and Vivendi, he promises them a balanced direction in which Jean-René Fourtou already promised to chair a duo SFR-Numericable also have its headquarters tutelary figure. Many promises that receive little support. "This scheme is hyper-complicated, despairs close to Vivendi, it's hard to believe."