PARIS (Reuters) - France Telecom has concerns on the price and technical aspects of a mobile licence up for auction in Syria and hasn't yet decided whether to bid to become the country's third operator, an executive told Reuters.
"The process seems too fixated on the price of the licence, when we also have strengths to bring in terms of technology and services," said Elie Girard, executive vice-president of group strategy and development
France Telecom is chasing growth in emerging markets in the Middle East and Africa to offset intensifying competition at home. Chief Executive Stephane Richard aims to double revenues in emerging markets to 7 billion euros by 2015, largely via acquisitions.
On Syria, however, Girard said the company has concerns about the frequencies on offer in the auction.
"The frequencies being sold are in the lower band, while the two existing operators are in the higher band," he explained, adding that such frequencies could require the winning operator to build a denser and therefore more expensive network.
Girard was speaking to Reuters after annual France Telecom results were announced on Thursday.
The Syrian government has said five bidders, including Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat), France Telecom and Turkcell, have qualified for the auction.
Bids are due April 12.
As part of its overseas expansion, France Telecom last year solidified its control of Egypt's Mobinil by settling a long legal war over ownership with its partner Orascom.
It also spent 640 million euros to buy 40 percent of Moroccan telecoms operator Meditel.
Now it is in talks for a minority stake in Iraq operator Korek Telecom, which is based in the northern Kurdistan region.
Girard said negotiations were ongoing with Korek, after starting in December. "Things are advancing on Korek and we are feeling confident," he said.
Asked whether France Telecom would consider bidding for the minority stake in Zain Saudi now on sale, Girard said the company was not interested.
Richard has said in recent weeks that ongoing political unrest in the Middle East and Africa has not tempered his enthusiasm for acquisitions in the region.
The operator is already present in a dozen countries there, including Egypt, Tunisia, Kenya, Senegal and Ivory Coast.
"These events don't call into question our project to grow in the region. Our businesses in Tunisia and Egypt are functioning normally. We saw some interruptions but no damages to our networks or offices there," he said on Thursday.