Ooredoo, Qatar’s largest telecoms firm formerly known as Qatar Telecom, has signed a $1 billion four-year revolving credit facility, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

The loan was provided by 14 banks and will be used for general business purposes and to help refinance an existing $1.25 billion facility which is due to mature in May, the statement added.

Sources told Reuters in January that the company was close to completing the loan deal, having initially approached banks in November about securing the transaction.

State-owned Qtel, the Gulf state's largest telecoms operator, has been on an acquisition drive in recent months, raising stakes in its subsidiaries as it takes advantage of the gas-rich Gulf state's healthy financial position at a time when other large telecoms companies are shying away from deals.

The operator is in talks to acquire Vivendi's 53 percent stake in Maroc Telecom, though it faces competition from others including the United Arab Emirates' Etisalat.

The telco is speaking to lenders about raising finance to back its bid, sources told Reuters LPC last month.

Meanwhile, Qtel increased its stake in Iraqi telco Asiacell and Kuwaiti affiliate Wataniya in 2012 and bought an additional 15 percent in Tunisian operator Tunisiana at the beginning of this year. – Reuters