PARIS (Reuters) - The chief executive of French telecoms company Orange (PA:ORAN) said he did not see at present opportunities for large pan-European mergers and ruled out buying a stake in media group Vivendi (PA:VIV), according to remarks published on Thursday.
French and German leaders have for years called for the creation of "European champions" such as Airbus (PA:AIR) to capitalise on the strengths of Europe's single market and create the scale needed to compete with U.S. and Asian rivals.
The comments by Stephane Richard come after investors welcomed a merger of the rail businesses of Germany's Siemens (DE:SIEGn) and France's Alstom (PA:ALSO), billed as creating a European champion.
"I looked at all possibilities, both of great European marriages: Franco-German, Franco-Spanish," Richard told Les Echos newspaper.
"I do not see today a project that creates value and is achievable. Current political, economic and social conditions do not allow it."
When asked about a hypothetical tie-up with fellow French operator Bouygues (PA:BOUY) or Vivendi, Richard appeared to close the door to both options.
"Bouygues is following a policy of lone development. In the short term, there is little scope for rapprochement," he said.
"For Vivendi, there is no discussion. Vivendi is a mix of content, some of which, like music, are not relevant to Orange. Vivendi owns 25 percent of Telecom Italia (MI:TLIT) but we are not interested in taking them back."