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OTE 2Q revenues up by 2.5% (Greece)

  • August 29th, 2008
  • 11:08 am

Cosmote’s continuous growth leads OTE (Greek operator) to post second quarter revenues of EUR 1.59 billion, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier. OIBDA improved 6.3 percent to EUR 578.8 million, and the OIBDA margin rose 1.5 points to 36.6 percent, helped by cost controls and Cosmote Romania turning its first profit. Net profit lifts 16.6 percent to EUR 159.3 million. Cash flow rose 26 percent to EUR 443.4 million. It anticipates the trends of the first half to continue in the rest of the year, with any declines from fixed-line operations offset by growth in mobile, said OTE.

OTE may sue Siemens for overcharging

  • June 2nd, 2008
  • 2:37 pm

OTE, Greece’s largest telecom group, which is partly owned by Deutsche Telekom, may sue Siemens for damages for allegedly overcharging, a Reuters report said.

The report quoted German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung saying that OTE has contacted lawyers in Germany and Greece to examine and prepare all necessary steps, which include a claim for damages.

Siemens was not immediately available for comment.

Earlier this week, former Siemens manager Reinhardt Siekaczek told a court that he had been asked by superiors to construct a slush-fund network to disguise payments to foreign telecoms companies after such bribes became illegal in Germany in 1998, the report said.

Such payments may have helped Siemens’ telecoms equipment division, of which OTE was a major customer, win contracts against rivals such as Cisco , Nokia and Ericsson, the Reuters report suggested This is bad news for Siemens which is already embroiled in court cases over alleged bribery and fraud.

   
 

Greece, Deutsche Telekom agree on OTE

  • May 16th, 2008
  • 1:38 pm

The Greek government and representatives of Deutsche Telekom have struck a deal on sharing ownership and management control of Greece’s largest telecom company, OTE, an Associated Press report said.

The report quoted Finance Minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis saying that under the deal, the Greek government and Deutsche Telekom would each control 25% plus one share of OTE, while the German operator could also raise its holdings of the Greek company in the future.

Deutsche Telekom would pay €29.75 (US$45.93) a share for a 3% stake in OTE, which will allow the German company to extend its footprint in Central and Eastern Europe and win access to long-coveted markets such as Romania and Bulgaria.

“The Greek government will receive €442.3 million (US$682.9 million),” Alogoskoufis said.

Deutsche Telekom announced in March the acquisition of a 20% stake in OTE, Greece’s former monopoly telecoms operator, for about €2.5 billion (US$3.87 billion), from Marfin Investment Group Holdings.

Since then, Deutsche Telekom has been in talks with the Greek government to discuss raising its stake in OTE further, as well as the delicate issue of management control at the company and the final acquisition price.

   
 

Greece looks to cap MIG stake in OTE at 20% (Greece)

  • December 10th, 2007
  • 2:11 pm

The Greek government has set a cap of 20 percent for shareholdings in strategically sensitive companies, a move seen as restraining Marfin Investment Group’s growing stake in national fixed-line operator OTE. Investors will now need government approval to raise a shareholding in a strategic company over 20 percent, writes Kathimerini. “This approval will be given if certain criteria are met for the protection of the public interest,” said finance minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis without providing further details. Ministry sources said the measure to limit shareholdings has the support of the European Union.

   

Marfin calls for EGM on governance at OTE (Greece)

  • December 7th, 2007
  • 7:27 am

Marfin Investment Group, the second-largest shareholder in OTE after the Greek state, has called for an EGM at the Greek operator to discuss its corporate governance. In a statement, MIG accused OTE’s management of taking “crucial decisions” on the company’s future without consulting shareholders. It’s calling for the company to provide more information on the decision to sell the directories unit Infote and the financing of the buy-out of mobile subsidiary Cosmote, as well as a general discussion on corporate governance practices. MIG called on the government to assume its responsibilities as lead shareholder, noting that the government had not participated in the decision to buy-out Cosmote and take out the large short-term borrowing for the deal. However MIG stressed its has “no controversy” with the Greek state and would not exercise its voting rights in opposition to the government.

   

OTE to sell Infote for EUR 300 mln (Greece)

  • December 3rd, 2007
  • 3:11 pm

Greek operator Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE) has signed an agreement with international private equity firm Rhone Capital and Zarkona Trading for the sale of 100 percent of Infote, its classified directory information subsidiary. The total value of the transaction is EUR 300 million. The closing of the transaction is not subject to any regulatory or other approvals and is expected to occur before the end of this year. Rhone and Zarkona will own 85 percent and 15 percent, respectively, in Infote post closing of the transaction.

   

Greek govt questions Marfin on OTE intentions (Greece)

  • September 27th, 2007
  • 1:24 pm

The Greek government has met with Marfin Investment Group to discuss its intentions for telecoms operator OTE. Marfin recently acquired a 10.8 percent stake in OTE. The economy and finance ministry said in a statement that the government had briefed Marfin on the government’s privatisation plans and Marfin will later make a public statement. Sources close to Marfin told the paper Kathimerini that Etisalat has been mentioned to the government as a possible strategic investor for OTE. Marfin is a shareholder in Etisalat, alongside the Dubai Investment Group. The government last year failed to find an investor for OTE and ended up selling off part of its stake in the operator on the open market. The paper’s sources suggested that OTE would not seek a partner until it completes the buy-out of minority shareholders in its mobile subsidiary Cosmote.

   

Cosmote CEO resigns (Greece)

  • September 26th, 2007
  • 10:20 am

Evangelos Martigopoulos has resigned as CEO of Greek mobile operator Cosmote. In a statement, Cosmote’s parent company OTE said the reason for the resignation was differences of opinion with OTE over Cosmote’s strategy. The OTE board will meet on 26 September to accept his resignation. No details on a successor were given. According to media reports, the change in management is expected to facilitate OTE buying out the minority shares in Cosmote. It currently holds 67 percent in the mobile operator.

   

OTE shareholder cooperates with government (Greece)

  • September 25th, 2007
  • 2:11 pm

The Greek government and Marfin Investment Group (MIG), the two largest shareholders in OTE, have agreed to cooperate on commercial and strategic opportunities for the Greek incumbent telco, reports Thomson Financial. The Finance Ministry announced that MIG vice-chairman Andreas Vgenopoulos has assured the Finance Minister, George Alogoskoufis, of his willingness to cooperate on OTE’s future. Greek-based MIG acquired additional OTE shares earlier this month to raise its minority stake from 5.3% to around 10.8%. In June the government completed the placement of a 10.7% stake in OTE to institutional investors, lowering its holding to 28%. Alogoskoufis has previously said that if the government cannot find a strategic investor, it could reduce its stake to around 5%-10%.

   

OTE to launch new fixed/mobile triple-play package (Greece)

  • September 10th, 2007
  • 7:02 am

Greek former monopoly telco OTE has announced that it will introduce a range of new fixed line service packages, including a triple-play option. Integrated fixed line, broadband and mobile telephony package ‘OTE all in One’ offers a single monthly bill, unlimited fixed-to-fixed calls, an ADSL broadband connection and a post-paid mobile phone subscription via OTE’s GSM operator subsidiary, Cosmote. The triple-play package is scheduled to be launched in October, but OTE did not reveal any pricing details. Other new packages feature unlimited local and domestic long-distance calls, fixed line SMS services, new fixed-to-mobile substitution offers, and integrated offers for business customers combining voice and data services at multiple locations.