Portuguese telco Nos aims to expand in small countries across Latin America and Africa, after consolidating its position in the domestic market, its CEO Miguel Almeida said.
In an interview with Portuguese weekly Expresso, Almeida pointed out that…
Portuguese telco Nos aims to expand in small countries across Latin America and Africa, after consolidating its position in the domestic market, its CEO Miguel Almeida said.
In an interview with Portuguese weekly Expresso, Almeida pointed out that Nos’ priority is to rank number one or two in all segments of the local telecoms market, where the number of subscribers grew by 7% in the last year.
However, the company is also looking at overseas expansion, particularly in smaller African and Latin American markets.
The CEO ruled out penetrating large, saturated markets like Brazil, and also dismissed rumours that the company, whose main shareholder is Angolan president’s daughter and billionaire Isabel dos Santos, would acquire PT’s 25% stake in Unitel, whose remaining shares are held by dos Santos and state-owned oil company Sonangol.
A Portugal-based analyst played down the remarks, saying that it will take another two to three years before Nos could pursue overseas growth opportunities.
In his view, it would not make much sense for a small operator such as Nos to look at Latin America. Instead, the company should concentrate on Africa, due to its cultural and language ties with Portugal.
The operator , which holds a 30% stake in Angolan pay TV company ZAP, could further expand its presence to countries such as Mozambique and Cabo Verde, the analyst said.
In an interview with TelecomFinance last month, the company, which was set up in 2013 following the merger with cableco Zon and wireless operator Optimus, said that its main focus was to grow its market share by 4 % to 5%− 3% to 5% in the consumer segment, and 5 % to 6% in the business sector.
In March, the quad-play operator applied for a €100m loan with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to expand its fibre footprint nationwide.
The project, which would require a total investment of €200m, consists of the roll-out of fixed next-generation access networks and technological developments, including investments in the backbone network and IT systems.
“We have successfully issued new facilities in the last months and will continue to explore opportunities to deliver on our funding strategy of reducing cost of debt, extending maturities and diversifying sources of fund,” a Nos spokesperson told this news service.
In recent months, Nos was also rumoured as a potential bidder for local cableco Cabovisao, which Altice has to divest together with fixed line-operator Oni, as part of the remedies imposed by the EU regulators to clear its acquisition of PT Portugal.
However, Nos is likely to be outbid by rival Vodafone, which last month was reported to be in early-stage talks over the asset.
“In spite of the synergies [between Nos and Cabovisao], the regulator will not allow Nos to acquire it as it would become a dominant player in the market,” the analyst pointed out.
As of Q3 14, PT held 54.8% of Portugal’s fixed telephony market, followed by Nos (30.5%), Vodafone (8.8%) and Cabovisao (4.7%).
