South Africa's Mediclinic to buy UAE's Al Noor Hospitals for $2.2B

Posted on : Friday , 23rd October 2015

South Africa‘s Mediclinic Intl has agreed to buy United Arab Emirates’ Al Noor Hospitals Group for around 1.4 billion pounds ($2.2 billion), gaining the upper hand on rival NMC Health in a tussle for expansion in the fast growing Gulf region.

The deal will double the South African group’s presence in the UAE, further diversifying out of its slow growing home market after a Swiss acquisition in 2007 and the stake it bought in Britain’s Spire Healthcare in June.

But NMC Health, already a major player in the UAE, vowed to fight on, saying on Wednesday it remained committed to a tie-up with London-listed Al Noor.