DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Kuwaiti telecom firm Zain has tentatively accepted a $950 million bid for its Saudi operations, the company's joint suitors said Monday.
Kingdom Holding Co., the investment company headed by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, said in a regulatory filing to the Saudi stock exchange Monday that it received a "preliminary acceptance" of its non-binding offer from Zain's board. Its partner, Bahraini telecom Batelco Group, made a similar statement to the Bahrain bourse.
Kingdom teamed up with Batelco to pursue the acquisition a day earlier. The companies had previously bid for Zain's Saudi operations separately, but those offers were unsuccessful.
The companies said they offered $950 million in cash for Kuwaiti Zain's 25 percent stake in the Saudi unit that bears its name. The other 75 percent of Zain's Saudi unit is split between public and private shareholders.
Kingdom said its joint bid with Batelco is subject to due diligence, the process of going through the Saudi firm's books. Kingdom estimates the process could take at least six weeks.
The bid doesn't include the assumption of $3.8 billion in Saudi Zain's debt. It is unclear how those liabilities would be handled if the acquisition is successful.
Zain didn't immediately comment Monday. Trading of its shares was halted on the Kuwaiti exchange pending further details.
Kuwait-based Zain has been seeking a buyer for its Saudi division as part of a $12 billion deal for the parent company from Etisalat, a United Arab Emirates telecom that has pursued rapid growth abroad after losing its monopoly at home. Zain must dispose of its Saudi stake to satisfy regulators because Etisalat already has a stake in mobile operations in the kingdom.