The government of Oman said it will sell a 19 per cent stake in the country’s number-one operator Omantel, in a move that could generate $595 million, reports Reuters.

The announcement of the share sale was made through the Muscat bourse with the government saying it would appoint a consultant to advise.

As the state currently holds a 70 per cent stake in Omantel — a former monopoly — it will still hold a majority stake of 51 per cent after the transaction.

Reuters calculated the potential value of the stake to be sold from Omantel’s market capitalisation on 16 September of $3.13 billion.

A plan to sell a 25 per cent stake in Omantel, in which eight operators were prequalified to bid, was scrapped in 2008 due to the global financial crisis.

According to GSMA Intelligence, Omantel had around 3.2 million mobile connections at the end of the second quarter of 2013.

The operator is currently facing fierce competition from its only rival, Nawras, which is majority-owned by Ooredoo and had 2.2 million connections.