27th Apr 2006 08:00
Vodafone Group Plc27 April 2006 27 April 2006 COMPLETION OF SALE OF VODAFONE JAPAN PROPOSED £6 BILLION RETURN OF CASH Further to its announcement on 17 March 2006, Vodafone has completed today thesale of its 97.68% interest in Vodafone Japan to a wholly-owned subsidiary ofSoftBank Corporation. The sale values Vodafone Japan at an Enterprise Value ofapproximately Yen 1.8 trillion (£8.9 billion). Vodafone will make a special distribution of approximately £6 billion,equivalent to around 10 pence per share, to shareholders shortly after its AGMto be held on 25 July 2006. Details of the precise method of distribution willbe released with the preliminary results in May. Arun Sarin, Chief Executive of Vodafone, commented: "I am pleased to announce the completion of the sale of Vodafone Japan toSoftBank. This transaction enhances Vodafone's adjusted earnings per share andfacilitates the return of approximately £6 billion to our shareholders. Wemaintain a strong relationship with SoftBank and we look forward to continuingto benefit from insights in the important Japanese mobile market." - ends- For further information: Vodafone Group Investor Relations Media RelationsTel: +44 (0) 1635 664447 Tel: +44 (0) 1635 664444 Notes to Editors Adjusted earnings per share represent earnings per share under IFRS before theresults of discontinued operations and items not reflecting underlying businessperformance. For illustrative purposes an exchange rate of Y205:£1 has been used. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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