The proposed acquisition of a controlling stake in government-owned Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) has become bogged down over the UK fixed-line operator Cable & Wireless Communications’ desire to cut 30% of the Bahaman telco’s workforce,…
The proposed acquisition of a controlling stake in government-owned Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) has become bogged down over the UK fixed-line operator Cable & Wireless Communications’ desire to cut 30% of the Bahaman telco’s workforce, according to local newspapers.
The UK company, trading under the Lime brand in the Bahamas, will only buy the state-owned incumbent if they can dramatically reduce its operating costs, the newspapers wrote.
However, the Prime Minister of The Bahamas, Hubert Ingraham, has said he cannot authorise the sale of the business if it will cause such drastic unemployment, according to The Tribune. The Guardian claims that the country’s main communications unions will also resist the sale.
A spokesperson for C&WC told TelecomFinance that the stories are pure press speculation and that the deal is not dead in the water, as negotiations with the Bahaman government are still ongoing.
BTC did not respond to a request for comment.
