Etisalat eyes majority stake in rival Zain

Etisalat is interested in buying a majority stake in Zain, the Kuwaiti mobile company that competes with the UAE national operator in markets across the Middle East and Africa, the company said ­yesterday.

Zain is valued at US$17.6 billion (Dh64.64bn) and said yesterday it was conducting a strategic review that could see it sell its assets in sub-Saharan Africa.

But Jamal al Jarwan, the head of Etisalat’s international investments unit, said the company was considering buying a controlling stake in the entire Zain group, which also operates networks in Gulf markets such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.