Nigerian businessman Mike Adenuga is preparing a bid for Comium Cote d’Ivoire worth US$600m including debt, reports Agence Ecofin citing sources.
Local officials have told the company it must pay off US$24.8m in debt by 15 May, or risk going into…
Nigerian businessman Mike Adenuga is preparing a bid for Comium Cote d’Ivoire worth US$600m including debt, reports Agence Ecofin citing sources.
Local officials have told the company it must pay off US$24.8m in debt by 15 May, or risk going into receivership, according to a separate report.
The owner of Nigeria’s number two operator Globacom would reportedly like to expand in West Africa, and is keen to take further advantage of his company’s GLO-1 submarine cable, which has a landing point in Cote d’Ivoire.
Adenuga’s GLO brand resonates with Ivorians, according to the report.
He is also willing to invest some US$1bn in the operator’s network.
Adenuga, Globacom and Comium were not immediately available for comment.
Oft-rumoured target Comium, owned by Lebanese businessman Dr Nizar Dalloul, also controls mobile operators in Gambia, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
In October, Cote d’Ivoire telecom regulator ARTCI was reportedly considering cancelling certain local licences, with a view to improve services. In May last year, the communications ministry called for the three smallest players – Comium, Libyan-owned GreenN and Warid Telecom to merge, creating a viable fourth player.
The market is currently dominated by the local units of Orange and MTN, which each control around 35% of the market, and Etisalat, which has 20%.
Cote d’Ivoire had a population of 24 million and mobile penetration of 87.5% as of the end of 2014.