Satellite service provider Eutelsat rejected a takeover bid from Altice Europe founder Patrick Drahi over unfavourable conditions, putting the brakes on a recent acquisition spree on the continent by the entrepreneur.

In a statement addressing media reports which surfaced earlier this week, Eutelsat noted it received an unsolicited non-binding offer from Drahi: a subsequent notice revealed the mooted price was €12.10 per share.

However, the company’s governance bodies “have unanimously decided not to engage in discussions based on the terms of this proposal”.

Reuters reported Drahi planned to acquire the satellite company through one of his investment companies and keep it separate from his telecom and media assets.

However, the initially proposed price was reportedly dismissed as being too low.

Eutelsat operates a fleet of 36 Geosynchronous Orbit satellites covering Europe, Africa, Asia, North and South America. It recently poured $550 million in troubled satellite communications company OneWeb.

Drahi commenced the run of European moves in September 2020 when he sealed a deal to buy back Altice Europe shares, effectively making it privately owned.

The company’s UK unit recently became BT Group’s largest shareholder through a takeover of a 12.1 per cent stake in June.