Brazilian authorities granted Oi a major reprieve, writing off half of administrative fines totalling BRL14.3 billion ($2.7 billion) imposed by regulator Anatel.

In a statement, the nation’s Attorney General’s Office said it reached an agreement guaranteeing Oi would pay Anatel BRL7.2 billion, after applying a law allowing “large companies undergoing judicial reorganisation, such as Oi, to settle their debts with discounts of up to 50 per cent and instalments in up to 84 months”.

Attorney General Leonardo Silva Lima Fernandes noted the agreement revealed “an important and positive change in the culture of collecting public credit”, as it allowed “an individualised look, attentive to situations that are peculiar, based on a dialogical and constructive relationship with the taxpayer”.

The original sum covered 198 administrative fines imposed by Anatel.

Oi’s deal also ends close to 1,700 lawsuits flying between the operator and regulator.

In its own statement, Oi said the agreement concluded “an important stage” of its “Judicial Reorganisation Plan” and eliminated “the legal uncertainty” for the company stemming from the proceedings.