Safaricom headquarters in Westlands, Nairobi. FILE PHOTO | NMG
Summary
- The fate of Safaricom's bid for a telecommunications licence in Ethiopia will be known by the end of next year at the earliest, according to new disclosures.
- The Ethiopian government plans to auction two new licences besides selling a stake in its monopoly Ethiopian Telecommunications Corp.
- The International Finance Corporation (IFC), which was appointed by the Ethiopian government to provide transaction advisory services, says its mandate runs until December 31, 2021.
The fate of Safaricom's bid for a telecommunications licence in
Ethiopia will be known by the end of next year at the earliest,
according to new disclosures.
The Ethiopian government
plans to auction two new licences besides selling a stake in its
monopoly Ethiopian Telecommunications Corp.
The
International Finance Corporation (IFC), which was appointed by the
Ethiopian government to provide transaction advisory services, says its
mandate runs until December 31, 2021.
This means
bidders for the new licences or stake in the existing operator will
likely be picked around the time IFC will be concluding its assignment.
"IFC
will support the Ministry of Finance issue two new full-service
telecommunications licences, in line with the objectives of the
Government of Ethiopia to liberalise the telecommunications sector," the
global financier said in a disclosure
Safaricom has announced it will team up with its South
Africa-based parent firm Vodacom Group to make a bid for one of the
licenses.
They could spend more than about $1 billion
(Sh106 billion) in the transaction besides start-up costs if their bid
is successful.
Safaricom has also not ruled out seeking
a stake in the current operator. The timelines indicate the telco's
balance sheet will remain unburdened for at least two years.
The
company has settled most of its debt and has in recent years
concentrated on paying dividends and investing in infrastructure.
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