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Atos extends talks to sell key assets to French state
Paris, Oct 7 (AFP) Oct 07, 2024
Troubled French tech giant Atos said Monday it will extend discussions with the state for the sale of sensitive parts of its business, including cybersecurity and supercomputers used for France's nuclear deterrent.

Atos, which is an Olympics partner and holds contracts with the French army, said that an offer from the government to buy certain strategically important assets had expired without an agreement between the two parties.

The company said it has "offered to continue discussions" and has sent to the French state a new proposal.

Finance Minister Antoine Armand, part of a new government that was appointed last month, responded in a statement that Paris intends to propose a new acquisition offer shortly.

Atos also announced that a preferential share in Bull, a subsidiary that builds supercomputers, will be issued to the government by the end of the year, giving it veto-power.

The previous government had offered 700 million euros ($769 million) for the company's most sensitive businesses in June, saying it "had to preserve Atos' strategic activities".

The beleaguered tech company, which employs 90,000 people over 69 countries, is laden with a debt pile of almost five billion euros ($5.5 billion).

The latest announcement will have "no impact" on the financial restructuring plan approved by shareholders and creditors in September, the company said.

The plan includes 233 million euros in new funding and a debt reduction of around three billion euros.

In August, the company announced a 1.9-billion-euro ($2.1 billion) loss for the first half of the year due to depreciation of assets and the end of contracts in the Americas.

A court hearing is set to take place October 15 in France to officially finalise the restructuring plan.

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Atos

Airbus Group


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