China Telecom to buy 10 networks from parent for US$3.4 bil.

HONG KONG, April 13 Kyodo

Hong Kong-listed China Telecom Corp. said Tuesday it will buy 10 telecommunications networks in China from its parent for 27.8 billion yuan (US$3.4 billion).

The leading Chinese fixed-line operator said in a statement that it will pay 8.34 billion yuan in cash and the remaining 19.46 billion yuan over a period of 10 years to the state-owned China Telecommunications Corp. for the acquisition.

The 10 target networks, covering Hubei, Hunan, Hainan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia and Xinjiang, had a total debt of about 40 billion yuan by the end of last year.

China Telecom said that upon the acquisition, its operations will expand to 20 provinces and autonomous regions in the mainland with more than 160 million access lines in service.

Its chairman Zhou Deqiang said the purchase represents ''a new and important opportunity'' for the company to benefit further from the sustained growth of the telecommunications industry in China.