Nokia Siemens Sells Unit to Marlin Equity Partners

STOCKHOLM--Nokia Siemens Networks on Monday said it's selling its optical networks business to Los Angeles-based private investment firm Marlin Equity Partners for an undisclosed sum.

The network joint venture of Nokia Corp. (NOK) and Siemens AG (SI) said up to 1,900 employees, mainly in Germany, Portugal and China, would transfer to a new company established by Marlin Equity Partners as a result of the transaction.

NSN had approximately 60,000 employees by the end of the third quarter this year.

The Finnish-German joint venture added that the deal is part of its efforts to focus solely on mobile broadband rather than other communication infrastructure, such as the fiber-optic communication technology developed by the optical network business.

NSN just reported surprisingly good third-quarter results, as it undergoes a major restructuring strategy launched in late 2011, refocusing the business on equipment to provide mobile internet access.

Last year it began divesting a number of business units that it considers "non-core," and pledged to cut nearly a quarter of its staff, or 17,000 people, in an effort to reach profitability and position itself for independence.

The targeted job cuts don't include staff transferred through divestment, NSN said Monday.

Marlin Equity Partners, a private equity firm with over $1 billion of capital under management, intends to build "an industry leader in the fragmented optical networking sector" through its acquisition of the NSN unit. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2013.

At 0915 GMT shares in Nokia traded 0.9% lower at EUR2.528.

Write to Sven Grundberg at [e-mail]; Twitter: @svengrundberg

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