Telenor makes new move to protect Holding in VimpelCom (Norway)
Telenor ASA has launched a legal action that could potentially overturn the $6-billion acquisition of Wind Telecom by Russia’s VimpelCom Ltd. , in which Telenor holds a 40% stake.
Norway’s largest telecoms firm, Telenor is seeking an order that would require VimpelCom to issue extra shares in its favor at the same time that it issues shares for Wind, which is controlled by Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris.
According to the company, it has petitioned the Commercial Court in London for an injunction that would see those shares placed in escrow until the conclusion of the arbitration proceeding that it launched Jan. 28.
Telenor has been at disputes with VimpelCom’s management and Altimo, a rival shareholder in the company, over the deal, which would create the world’s fifth-biggest mobile operator by subscribers.
Telenor had lost its pre-emptive rights after an Altimo shareholder purchased a stake in Egypt-based Orascom Telecom Holding, which is more than half-owned by Wind Telecom.
The purchase made the acquisition of Wind a related-party transaction, preventing Telenor and other shareholders from exercising their pre-emptive right to buy shares and counteract the reduction of their stakes in the company.
The share issue in Wind’s favor will be voted on by VimpelCom shareholders on March 17 and is set to be at the final stage of the Russian mobile operator’s troubled acquisition of heavily indebted Wind.
As per the acquisition terms, VimpelCom will pay Wind Telecom $1.495 billion in cash, while Wind will also get 325.6 million new VimpelCom common shares and 305 million new convertible preferred shares, which have voting rights.
Orascom Telecom Algeria received the final Tax Reassessment for the years 2008 and 2009 amounting to US$ 230 Million
Orascom Telecom Holding (OTHâ€) announces that its Algerian subsidiary Orascom Telecom Algeria (OTAâ€) has received the final tax notification from the Algerian Direction des Grandes Enterprises (Tax Department for Large-Scale Companies) (the DGEâ€) in respect of the years 2008 and 2009, in which the DGE has re-assessed taxes alleged to be owed by OTA in the amount of approximately DZD 17 billion (approximately USD230 million) (the Reassessmentâ€).
The Reassessment is considered a final notification pursuant to the preliminary notification OTA received in September 2010. This Reassessment comes despite the fact that OTA had already paid the taxes due for the same years.
Without prejudice to their rights under the Investment Agreement, applicable bilateral investment treaty and applicable laws, OTH and OTA intend to take all necessary legal steps to challenge this completely unfounded Reassessment.
About Orascom Telecom
Orascom Telecom is a leading international telecommunications company operating GSM networks in high growth markets in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, having a total population under license of approximately 506 million with an average mobile telephony penetration of approximately 48% as of September 30th, 2010. Orascom Telecom operates GSM networks in Algeria (OTAâ€), Pakistan (Mobilinkâ€), Egypt (Mobinilâ€), Bangladesh (banglalinkâ€), North Korea (koryolinkâ€) and Canada (Wind Mobileâ€) through its indirect equity shareholding in Globalive Wireless. In addition it has an indirect equity ownership in Telecel Zimbabwe (Zimbabwe) and through its subsidiary Telecel Globe; OTH also operates in Burundi, the Central African Republic and Namibia. Orascom Telecom reached almost 98 million subscribers as of September 30th, 2010.
Orascom Telecom is traded on the Cairo & Alexandria Stock Exchange under the symbol (ORTE.CA, ORAT EY), and on the London Stock Exchange its GDR is traded under the symbol (ORTEq.L, OTLD LI). For more information visit www.orascomtelecom.com.
Orascom Telecom gets final $230 million tax (Egypt)
Egyptian mobile operator Orascom Telecom Holding has stated that Algerian authorities had given its local unit Djezzy a final $230 million tax request for the years 2008 and 2009.
According to the company, it had already paid taxes for those years and would take legal steps to challenge the completely unfounded reassessment.
Djezzy, Orascom’s single biggest revenue earner, has been at the centre of a long-running dispute with Algiers since it was hit with over $600 million in previous back-tax claims and penalties last year.
Uncertainty over the fate of the unit, which Algeria has stated it wants to nationalize, has complicated a $6.6 billion deal to sell a majority stake in Orascom and other assets to Russian operator VimpelCom.
According to earlier statements by Orascom, it had received preliminary notification of the $230 million reassessment, but that it was not final.
As per Orascom, without prejudice to their rights under the investment agreement, applicable bilateral investment treaty and applicable laws, OTH (Orascom Telecom Holding) and OTA (Orascom Telecom Algeria) intend to take all necessary legal steps to challenge this completely unfounded reassessment.
VimpelCom, Weather plan for deal even without Djezzy
If sources are to be believed, VimpelCom Ltd.’s shareholders and Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris have an agreement to cement a merger even if Algeria nationalizes the local unit of Sawiris’s Orascom Telecom Holding without paying Orascom a cent.
According to the sources, the Russian, Norwegian, Egyptian and the other major shareholders went into the telecom deal with their eyes wide open about the risks of nationalization in Algeria, and they agreed to a plan B, committing them to work toward a merger even without Algerian unit Djezzy.
As per reports citing Orascom Telecom Chief Executive Khaled Bishara, they are still working on the deal and Algeria probably won’t be the deciding factor for selling Sawiris’ approximately 50% stake in Orascom to VimpelCom.
According to VimpelCom spokeswoman Elena Prokhorova, VimpelCom is continuing to work on the deal, including getting the required regulatory permissions, and also on the situation in Algeria. Still, Sawiris recently indicated the deal has a 50% chance at best of being finalized. VimpelCom major shareholder Telenor ASA has also expressed concerns about the problems in Algeria.
Chad Government Sells 60% Stake in Sotel Tchad
Libyan state-owned firm LAP Green Network has acquired a majority stake in Chad’s Sotel telecoms firm for US$90 million. The deal, which gives the Libyan firm 60% stake in Sotel Tchad, was signed during a visit to Chad by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Sotel TChad operates both a mobile and landline network. According to reports citing LAP Green Network Managing Director Abdulbaset Elazzabi, the value of the contract which was signed during the Libyan leader’s visit is US$90 million. The deal came with a commitment by the Libyan company to invest up to $100 million in boosting Sotel’s network.
As per the previous reports citing authoritative sources, last the Chadian government had already sold the 60% stake to a UK based company, Mid Cost for an undisclosed amount. It is presumed that the UK Company failed to complete on the deal.
Earlier, Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH) finally settled a long running dispute with the government and was paid US$4.9 million in satisfaction of an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) panel award.
The dispute occurred from a decision by the Chadian Ministry of Telecommunications to invalidate the transfer of 51% of the shares of Tchad Mobile to OTH despite the fact that a valid agreement was entered into in late 2002 between OTH and Sotel Tchad. As a result, OTH suspended its operation of TchadMobile in July 2004.
Orascom extends management contract with Alfa (Lebanon)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The management agreement between Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH) and Lebanon’s Alfa Network has been extended by the former for a period of 6 months ending on July 31, 2010.
A monthly sum of US$2.5 million in addition to 8.5% of total revenues is received by OTH under this contract. All the operational expenses (OPEX) of the network are OTH’s liability which is also entitled to keep the remainder as management fees. The Republic of Lebanon is fully responsible for the CAPEX during the contract period.
According to Khaled Bichara, Orascom Telecom’s CEO, the company is glad of the achievements made in the Lebanese mobile market through its management of Alfa during the past year, and are hoping to secure a presence for OTH within the long term plans of the Republic of Lebanon for its mobile communication market.
Egypt to sign 3rd mobile license contract with UAE company-led consortium
The Egyptian government is expected to officially sign on Aug. 21 the third mobile-network license contract with a consortium led by Etisalat, a UAE-based telecom company, the state-run daily Al-Gomhuria reported.
Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif will attend the signing ceremony, said the daily.
The new company led by Etisalat is set to begin providing mobile services by mid-February in 2007 in major Egyptian cities and resorts, such as Cairo, Alexandria, Hurghada and Sharm el- Sheikh, according to Egyptian Minister of Communications and Information Technology Tareq Kamel.
The Etisalat-led consortium has deposited the full amount of the license fees to an designated Egyptian bank account, said Amr Badawi, Chairman of the National Agency for Regulation of Telecommunications.
On July 4, Etisalat beat eight other bidders to win the third mobile phone network license, along with its three other Egyptian partners, namely, the Egypt Post, the National Bank of Egypt and the Commercial International Bank.
The consortium won the bid by offering a staggeringly high price at about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars.
The new service provider will use the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) system and the third-generation (3G) technology for its network.
The current Egyptian mobile service market is shared by Vodafone Egypt and Mobinil, a joint venture between Egypt’s Orascom Telecom Holding and France Telecom.
Vodafone Egypt and Mobinil had a combined subscribers of about 13 million at the end of 2005.
Source- http://english.people.com.cn
Technorati : 3G, Egypt, GSM, Mobinil, Orascom, Vodafone Egypt
Ice Rocket : 3G, Egypt, GSM, Mobinil, Orascom, Vodafone Egypt
