By Chris Spillane and John Bowker
(Bloomberg) — Telkom SA SOC Ltd. said it’s in talks to buy Cell C Pty Ltd., an acquisition that would add South Africa’s third-biggest mobile-phone company to its wireless unit.
The land-line operator, 40 percent owned by the South African government, is carrying out due diligence and will update shareholders accordingly, the Pretoria-based company said in a statement on Monday.
Oger Telecom Ltd. has already rejected a 14 billion rand ($988 million) offer from Telkom for the Dubai-based company’s 75 percent stake in Cell C, a person familiar with the matter said last month.Telkom operates South Africa’s fourth-biggest mobile-phone provider and is seeking to grow the business to help offset declining sales at its larger fixed-line unit.
