Finland's Nokia closes maps unit sale to German car makers

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland's Nokia on Friday said it had completed the sale of its navigation business HERE to German car makers BMW , Audi and Mercedes .

Nokia said its net proceeds from the deal would be around 2.55 billion euros ($2.78 billion), in line with its original estimate. The deal was initially estimated to close in the first quarter of 2016.

Nokia last year sold its once-dominant mobile phone business to Microsoft , and following the maps deal, it is left with its mainstay telecom network equipment business and patents.

Earlier this week, the company's shareholders approved an all-share acquisition of network rival Alcatel-Lucent for 15.6 billion euros, expected to close early next year. ($1 = 0.9171 euros)

(Reporting by Jussi Rosendahl. Editing by Jane Merriman)