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Etisalat Nigeria to get new name, as parent company ends management agreement
It is hoped that in three weeks, the new management would be able to get a new owner for the telecom, other it would merger with an existing player in the industry.
Etisalat Nigeria has facing financial challenges meeting the need repayments of the $1.2 billion credit facility gotten from a consortium of 1o commercials banks in Nigeria.
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This sign was given by the CEO of Etisalat International, Hatem Dowidar during an interview with the Reuters this morning.
The Etisalat chief noted that all shareholders of Etisalat International and Mubadala Development company have pulled out of the company, and not part of the recently constituted board.
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"There is a new board and we are not part of that company. We have sent our termination letter for the management agreement," he told Reuters.
Dowidar said parent Etisalat had written down the value of the Nigerian business on its books and that transferring its 45 percent stake to the lenders after loan renegotiation talks collapsed had no impact on the group.
He also informed that the company has begun a three-week brand name phasing period, which would finally mark the exit of Etisalat from Nigeria.
"The brand agreement in either of these two scenarios won't be a long-term thing, so we take out the brand; in the long term Etisalat won't be in Nigeria."
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It would be recalled that the Teleco company had challenges converting its $1.2 billion debts to local Nigerian currency. A move the lender banks refused stating that they would accept the loan repayment in its given currency.
Though, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) have taken moves to save the company from been taking under receivership by constituting another board and management team for the company.
It is hoped that the company would be restored to stability, where scouting for potential buyers. This fact was also disclosed by Dowidar.
"(Nigerian) lenders may try to continue to operate the company until they find a buyer (or) they may merge the company with the existing players in Nigeria, he said, adding that it was tough to say what lenders would do,” he confirmed during this interview.
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