Pieter Uys, the CEO of South Africa’s Vodacom Group, said that the company will appeal a court decision about the sale of its mobile unit in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
On 14 May, Vodacom, which has a 51% stake in Vodacom DRC, was ordered to pay…
Pieter Uys, the CEO of South Africa’s Vodacom Group, said that the company will appeal a court decision about the sale of its mobile unit in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
On 14 May, Vodacom, which has a 51% stake in Vodacom DRC, was ordered to pay US$21m in consultant fees to Moto Mabanga or face the sale of its shares in the unit by 3 June.
Namemco Energy, owned by Moto Mabanga, had been hired by Vodacom to settle a shareholder dispute with Congolese Wireless Network over funding and operational structure.
But Uys said, during a conference call today, that Vodacom will not allow the sale of the assets because it does not agree with the court findings.
However, he added that, in the long term, the South African telco could consider divesting the DRC operations on its own terms.
In December 2010, Vodacom agreed with Congolese Wireless Network, which holds 49% of Vodacom DRC, to appoint NM Rothschild to explore options for the unit.
And in late January, TelecomFinance had confirmed that South Africa’s MTN Group had been invited by Vodacom to “evaluate various alternatives in relation to its investment in the DRC”.
