Date Published: 09/05/09

BPE assures transparent sale of Nitel, others

The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has assured Nigerians that the current process to sale the Nigerian Telecommunications (Nitel) Limited, by the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) will be carried out transparently.

BPE, the secretariat of the NCP said it will navigate all odds to succeed in this sixth attempt to get a competent core investor that turn around the ailing entity, along the line of effectiveness and profitability.

Dr.Christopher Anyanwu, director-general of the government owned agency gave assurance when members of the newly elected executive of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Abuja chapter visited him, in his office, last week, in Abuja.

The DG who disclosed that there are many interest groups, who would want thwart the efforts of the agency in conducting transparent transactions said: “I will not embark on any bidding that is against the law” Mr. Jacob Edi, Chairman of the NUJ, Abuja chapter, in his remark called on the bureau to ensure that the Nitel transaction is carried out this time, to its logical conclusion. He also suggested to the agency to assist in training Journalists who cover the activities of the BPE, in order to report the process from an informed point of view.

The BPE has received expressions of interest from 13 potential investors in the sale of at least 75 percent of Nitel, the former state telecoms monopoly which it has been trying to privatise for years.

Only last week,  the bureau said it would evaluate interest from companies including the Nigerian arms of South Africa's MTN (MTNJ.J) and Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat) (ETEL.AD), MTNL India (MTNL.BO), a group involving Spain's Telefonica (TEF.MC) and Nigerian firm Globacom. Nigeria is one of the world's fastest growing mobile markets, adding 7 million new subscribers in the last quarter of 2008 alone, and has overtaken South Africa to become the biggest on the continent. That could make it attractive to foreign investors, particularly if Nitel's MTEL mobile unit can be bought at the right price. But the government has struggled to sell Nitel, largely because of the state of its fixed line infrastructure.

The BPE said preference would be given to bidders seeking to acquire Nitel's fixed lines, its transmission backbone, components of its South Atlantic Terminal underwater cable (SAT-3) and mobile unit MTEL together. Those bidding separately for MTEL must make necessary investments to detach MTEL from the Nitel networks, it said.

President Umaru Yar'Adua a few weeks back instructed the new board of Nitel to privatise the company within 60 days, the latest in a series of deadlines which have come and gone for the sale.

Nitel's fixed lines have fallen to less than 100,000 from five times that figure in 2001, while MTEL subscribers have dropped to a few thousand. New investors have been hard to find.

Nigeria ended Nitel's monopoly in 2001 and tried to sell the operator the same year. However, preferred bidders failed to pay the $1.3 billion price tag by the deadline, leaving it in state hands.

Local conglomerate Transcorp (TCNP.LG) later bought a majority stake but the government took back control in June, citing a lack of investment and unpaid debts. [ID: nL1639247] Nigeria came close to selling Nitel in late 2005 to Egypt's Orascom Telecom (ORTE.CA) (ORTEq.L), but the government rejected the $257 million offer as too low.

Nitel's infrastructure fell into disrepair during decades of inefficient state management. Lines malfunction, billing is erratic and staff can go for months without pay.