Singtel denies talks of deal to offload Optus for A$16b

It said it is currently focused on ‘network resilience and conducting a CEO search’.

Singapore Telecommunications Limited has refuted an article that it is looking to sell its Australian unit Optus for $14.13b (A$16b).

The statement came after the Financial Review reported that Singtel is in advanced discussion with private equity group Brookfield.

“There is no impending deal to offload Optus for the said sum, as reported. Optus remains an integral and strategic part of the Singtel Group and we are committed to Australia for the long term,” Singtel said.

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“Shareholders of Singtel and potential investors are advised to exercise caution in their review of any media reports relating to Optus ahead of any definitive announcements when dealing with the shares of the company. Singtel will make an announcement if and when there are any material developments which warrant disclosure in accordance with our obligations under the Listing Manual of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited.”

Singtel said their current focus has been on improving network resilience and conducting a CEO search.

November last year, Former Optus CEO Kelly Bayer resigned a little over a week after a nationwide outage left millions of customers without phone or internet access for 12 hours.