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Alcatel cuts ex-CEO Combes departure pay after outcry

PARIS (Reuters) - Alcatel-Lucent's board has decided to cut the payoff given to former chief executive Michel Combes to a maximum of nearly 8 million euros ($9 million) after an outcry in France.

Combes came under fire after media reported that he could receive the equivalent of around $15 million in stock on leaving Alcatel-Lucent after he negotiated the sale of the telecom gear maker to Finland's Nokia.

Alcatel-Lucent has capped Combes' variable pay element at 4.85 million euros cash, on completion of the deal. He will also get 3.1 million euros to prevent him from working for a competitor, the group said in a statement on Friday.

The board had made the changes following a request from Combes himself, the company said.

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"Combes confirmed with the board that he would remain at the company's disposal until the closing of the operation with Nokia," Alcatel-Lucent added.

Drugs company Sanofi faced criticism from rebel investors in May over payments to attract a new boss and the severance package for his predecessor.

The Alcatel-Lucent decision, taken at a board meeting on Thursday, followed recommendations from the French corporate governance oversight body and observations from France's AMF financial regulator.

It also comes after French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron last week described Combes' departure before the finalisation of the takeover by Nokia, set to close by the middle of next year, as "shocking" and "bad corporate behaviour."

Combes has taken up new jobs as chief operating officer of telecoms networks operator Altice and chairman of its French subsidiary Numericable-SFR.

Combes had defended his package, saying he would receive a significant sum as he had agreed to maximise the variable part of his pay to reflect the risk of failure.

He argued that he had saved the company and created value for shareholders. Alcatel's share price has risen from less than 1 euro before he took over on April 1, 2013, to trade mostly between 3 and 4 euros this year.

($1 = 0.8878 euros)

(Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Michel Rose and Jane Merriman)