Zambia to hold talk with two suitors for Zamtel sale
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) has selected two firms for talks to buy a majority stake in Zambia’s fixed-line phone operator Zamtel. The two firms are Angola’s Unitel and Libya’s LAP Green Networks and the talks are expected to start later this month for the purchase of 75 percent of Zamtel.
Despite monopoly rights, Zamtel which is Zambia’s only licensed fixed-line provider of voice and data communications has performed poorly and its revenue for the year to end-December was $100 million. It has also been criticized by opposition politicians and trade unions, who say Zambians should hold a bigger stake in the company.
According to Zamtel, ZDA Director General Andrew Chipwende, the company is expecting to commence concessions with the two bidders for Zamtel by the third week of April and the target is to try and conclude the process by the end of June.
Zamtel shortlists three companies for its privatization bid
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: A step ahead has been taken in the privatization bid of Zambia’s telecommunications operator Zamtel. The step has been taken after the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) short listed three companies to continue the bidding with Indian state owned telco BSNL withdrawing from the bidding.
Angola’s Unitel, Libya’s LAP Green Networks and Russia’s Altimo are now the three shortlisted companies by Zamtel. BSNL withdrew after carrying out due diligence on the company.
According to ZDA privatization manager Henry Sakala, the bids will be subjected to an evaluation by the ZDA and after the evaluation they will be presented to the ZDA board, which will make a decision on which companies with which to negotiate.
The negotiation with the bidders will be done by an independent team to be appointed which will try and avoid the political problems that have bedeviled privatizations in other countries.
