The Nepalese government has today reportedly decided to allow state-owned Nepal Telecom (NT) to bring in a strategic partner in order to give the company a new impetus.
The Himalayan Times quoted an unnamed finance ministry official saying it may still…
The Nepalese government has today reportedly decided to allow state-owned Nepal Telecom (NT) to bring in a strategic partner in order to give the company a new impetus.
The Himalayan Times quoted an unnamed finance ministry official saying it may still take a while before a partner is found. The plan has been in the pipeline since 2010 but due to red tape a deal has so far failed to materialise.
Almost a year ago it had already been reported that the Nepalese government was preparing to offload 30% of Nepal Telecom and that it had formed a committee to that effect.
This year’s new committee – which comprises two finance ministry representatives and four NT officials – is currently drafting the conditions a new partner will need to meet, according to the Himalayan Times.
The government has already reportedly said the company will need to have operated in at least three countries with a subscriber base of 20 million. It will also need to have earned annual revenues of US$1bn and generated profits for at least three years.
NT, which is 91.5% state-owned, has a monopoly on fixed-line services in Nepal while it is second in the country’s wireless duopoly, behind TeliaSonera-held Ncell.
The telco is reportedly one of the few profitable state-owned companies and posted a profit of Npr11.31bn (US$114.5m) in the last fiscal year ended mid-July. But this profit has taken a hit over the last few years due to growing competition from Ncell.
Nepal Telecom was not immediately available for comment.
