Orange cleared by Spain to buy remaining 50% of MasOrange

Orange received authorization from Spain's Council of Ministers in April 2026 to acquire the remaining 50% of MasOrange that it did not already control. The stake is currently held by Lorca, a company backed by Providence, Cinven and KKR, and the transaction would give Orange full ownership of the operator created by the merger with MásMóvil.

The deal carries a main payment of €4.25 billion. Spain processed the approval under its so-called anti-takeover law, which was introduced during the pandemic and remains in force until December 2026 to review foreign investment in strategic sectors. Spain's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business concluded the transaction posed no national security risk, while noting that MasOrange operates critical infrastructure including fiber-optic and mobile networks across Spain. Orange said it would keep the current structure in place and confirmed Meinrad Spenger as CEO of its Spanish unit.

The transaction still needs one final formal step at the European Commission. EU competition authorities already cleared the acquisition in Phase 1 on 10 April 2026 after finding the combined entity's market share was below 30% and did not harm competition. The remaining review falls under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, which checks whether the selling funds received support from non-EU states such as the United States or the United Kingdom. Orange and the Lorca JVCO funds agreed the financial terms on 31 October 2025, and the EU decision on the subsidies review is expected before 14 or 15 May.