The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says it has ordered more due diligence on the preferred bidder selected for 9Mobile, reports Premium Times. NCC’s executive vice chairman Umar Danbatta said the due diligence will determine whether the bid winner has the technical capacity as well as the financial resources to successfully run the beleaguered telecommunications company.
Danbatta said the commission would soon report to its board on the result of the due diligence. He added that the preferred bidder must fulfil all the necessary conditions before it would be allowed to take over the company formerly known as Etisalat. He said the acquisition of 9Mobile has stuttered since the beginning of the year because the commission was determined to ensure the preferred bidder fulfilled all the necessary conditions before being allowed to take over the firm.
Irene Charnley of SMILE
In April, Teleology Holdings was named the preferred bidder, and Smile Telecoms Holdings the reserve bidder, on the recommendation of Barclays Africa. Teleology Holdings was reported to have made an offer of USD 500 million, against Smile Telecoms’ USD 300 million offer. Their statuses were subject to NCC’s final confirmation.
Source: telecompaper.com
Tags: Africa, Nigeria, Telecom News
