Etisalat, the Abu Dhabi state-owned telecoms firm, has organised an $8 billion “dual-tranche” credit facility to pay for its acquisition of Vivendi’s stake in Maroc Telecom, unnamed bankers disclosed this to Reuters at the weekend.

Vivendi, the French media group, wants to dump its 53 percent stake in Maroc, Morocco’s biggest telecoms company and use the proceeds of the sale to shrink its debt.

Etisalat, the biggest telecoms firm in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is reportedly working with BNP Paribas as financial adviser, organising an $8 billion funding.

It is understood that the funding is divided equally between a term loan and a bridge loan. The bridge loan will later be refinanced through a bond sale, Reuters reported.

Standard & Poor’s scores Etisalat at AA- and the pricing on the loan is in line with the typical level for that rating, one of the bankers told Reuters.

The telecom company’s bid for Maroc Telecom is its first open attempt to buy a foreign company since its $12 billion effort for a controlling stake in Kuwait’s Zain collapsed 24 months ago, Reuters reported.

Additional likely suitors competing for this stake include state-owned Qatar Telecom and South Korea’s KT Corp.

According to Reuters, Qatar Telecom is also in discussions with financial institutions about a “loan facility” to finance its bid for the stake. Credit Suisse, Citigroup and Societe General are reportedly advising KT Corp on the transaction.

It is believed that this shareholding is worth around $6 billion. According to Reuters, the winning bidder is expected to eventually make an offer to buy out the minority shareholders, which would add to the purchase price.

Suitors are likely to prepare financing for the purchase of this shareholding before making closing bids to Vivendi. Deadline is at the end of April, sources told Reuters.