Telefonica Czech Republic and rival Vodafone are close to agreeing a network-sharing joint venture, reports local daily MF Dnes.

According to the newspaper, citing sources from both companies, Telefonica reckons that sharing transmitters and other equipment with Vodafone could save its Czech unit over CZK 4 billion (€155 million) over the course of 15 years.

Vodafone appears to be willing to pay €40 million under the arrangement, although details on the planned partnership between the two firms are not yet clear.

Telefonica already shares part of its Czech 3G network with T-Mobile, but the reported deal with Vodafone is said to be on a much bigger scale.

According to Q2 2013 figures from GSMA Intelligence, Telefonica Czech Republic has just over 5 million subscribers, placing it second behind T-Mobile (5.5 million).

Vodafone occupies third position with 3.3 million subscribers.