BTC IPO For Next Year

Botswana’s Public Enterprises Evaluation and Privatisation Agency (PEEPA) has said that an initial public offering (IPO) for fixed line incumbent Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC) is likely to take place after the end of the operator’s financial year in March 2011.

Local news source Mmegi Online reports that a 49% stake in BTC will be sold to investors and BTC employees, while the government will retain the remaining 51%. Commenting on BTC’s privatisation, Kgotla Ramaphane, CEO of PEEPA, said: ‘The process involves the appointment of advisers for the IPO and many other stakeholders,’ Ramaphane noted, adding: ‘We are working towards the end of the financial year, which is March 2011.

At this time, we should know the date for the IPO. However, there is a lot of groundwork and further discussions to be had before we can arrive there.’ According to the operator’s spokesperson Anno Tsie, discussions will involve the number of shares that will be set aside for BTC employees, as well as the price of shares and the listing requirements for the Botswana Stock Exchange.

The privatisation of BTC was first mooted in June 2006, with initial plans envisaging the sale of between 40% and 49% of the telco to a strategic investor and a 5% share to BTC employees. The remaining shares would be retained by the government for a future stock market listing. The first stage of the privatisation began in January 2007, with a tender put out for ‘advisory services’.

In February 2008 PEEPA signed a contract with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to act as transactional advisor in the privatisation. The IFC completed due diligence in November 2008 and in 2009 the Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (Transition) Bill was enacted in parliament, which established BTC as a public company under the Company Act.

BTC Privatisation Plans On

The government of Botswana has reaffirmed its goal of privatising incumbent telecoms operator Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC), local newspaper The Sunday Standard reports. Presidential affairs minister Lesego Motsumi told parliament that ‘the cabinet has now taken a decision on the privatisation structure of BTC and the information will soon be communicated with all stakeholders.’

Motsumi added that the process was delayed because the government had to carry out lengthy consultation activities with all of the telco’s stakeholders in a bid to minimise risks and maximise benefits.

The privatisation of BTC was first mooted in June 2006, with initial plans envisaging the sale of between 40% and 49% of the telco to a strategic investor and a 5% share to BTC employees. The remaining shares would be retained by the government for a future stock market listing.

The first stage of the privatisation began in January 2007, with a tender put out for 'advisory services'. In February 2008 the Public Enterprises Evaluation and Privatisation Agency (PEEPA) signed a contract with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to act as transactional advisor in the privatisation. The IFC completed due diligence in November 2008 and in 2009 the Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (Transition) Bill was enacted in parliament.

Helios Nigeria Obtains $150 Million IFC Funding for Development

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is extending US $150 million in syndicated loans to support Helios Towers Nigeria as part of an overall $250 million initiative to improve access to telecommunications in Nigeria. The initiative seeks to help Helios Towers Nigeria, or HTN, increase its network to 2,000 shared tower communication sites nationwide.

The IFC's earlier $100 million investment in the initiative was announced in September 2009.

The $150 million investment includes $76 million in loans syndicated to the African Development Bank, FMO of the Netherlands, Germany's DEG, and Proparco of France. It also includes a $30 million loan to Nigeria's First City Monument Bank and a $44 million loan from Cordiant Capital, the Emerging African Infrastructure Fund, and Nedbank of South Africa.

Nigeria's telecommunications sector has developed significantly in recent years, but the country's 43 percent teledensity indicates that growth potential remains. With the expansion of the HTN network, operators will be able to outsource non-core activities and passive infrastructure, allowing them to focus on further developing their products and services.

"Access to quality, affordable mobile telecommunications is essential to development, both in terms of its ability to ease basic communication needs and to increase access to knowledge and services," said Mohsen Khalil, IFC Director for Global Information and Communication Technologies. "By promoting Nigeria's access to mobile infrastructure through HTN's network, IFC seeks to strengthen the country's efforts to better serve its consumers and businesses."

XOF 29 Billion Raised from Onatel IPO

Burkina Faso has raised XOF 29 billion from the sale of 20 percent of telecoms operator Onatel through an initial public offering of shares. The shares in Onatel, which is 51 percent owned by 

Maroc Telecom, will be listed on the West Africa franc zone regional BRVM bourse based in neighbouring Ivory Coast by 1 May, Alexis Lourgo, MD of lead manager SBIF, told Reuters. 

Investors in Onatel include Burkinabe individuals and companies, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank.

The Burkinabe state is the biggest shareholder in the firm, retaining 20 percent after Maroc Telecom. 

IFC to Buy into Burkina's Onatel

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is to purchase up to 5% of Burkina Faso's telecom operator Onatel in an effort to support an ongoing IPO. IFC,  the World Bank’s private sector lender, in a statement said it would take on a stake of up to 5% by buying any unsubscribed shares.  The IPO begun on 22 December 2008 and closes on 31 January 2009.

Onatel intends not to displace any private investors.  Should all shares be subscribed to, according to IFC, the government will sell it a 3% stake.

Currently, Maroc Telecom has 51% shares in Onatel, which stake it acquired in 2006 when the government embarked on privatization of the network.  In the IPO, Burkina Faso's first ever, the government is offering a further 20% stake

IFC is also working closely with the Burkinabé government to improve the legal and regulatory environment and make it easier for entrepreneurs and private businesses to operate and contribute to economic development, according to the statement. In fiscal 2007, IFC invested $8.5 million in the country. On a broader scale, IFC is increasing its investments in Africa, particularly in the poorest countries and regions where the private sector has played a limited role in economic development thus far, the statement adds.