France Telecom may spend longer working to reach a deal to acquire Nordic operator TeliaSonera than the 15 days it initially gave as a timetable, a France Telecom spokeswoman said Monday.

The spokeswoman confirmed comments by Chief Financial Officer Gervais Pellissier cited in a note by Exane BNP Paribas, saying France Telecom is ready to slightly extend the initial timetable but wants to finalize discussions by the end of June.

Since France Telecom's approach to TeliaSonera is non-hostile, "there is no deadline as such," the spokeswoman said.

France Telecom outlined plans to acquire TeliaSonera in a $42-billion cash and share deal on June 5. The offer was immediately rejected by the TeliaSonera board and the Swedish government, the company's largest shareholder.

In their note, the Exane analysts said France Telecom could increase the cash element of the offer.

At 1424 GMT, France Telecom shares were down EUR0.20, or 1.1%, at EUR18.32, amid a 0.9% decline in France's benchmark CAC-40 index.

Source:Dow Jones