“We look for growth opportunities and we see Nigeria as a growth opportunity. This is probably the last gateway opportunity to become involved in the African continent”, commented Nicholas Batchelor, chief executive officer of Telecom New Zealand’s Europe, Asia and Africa unit, quoted by BusinessWeek reporters.
The official cited fuel shortages and power blackouts as the only concerns about Nigeria.
Telecom New Zealand International is part of the Brymedia consortium, involved in the final bid for NITEL. Brymedia’s $551 million bid for Nitel was third highest behind New Generation and Omen International.
If accepted, Brymedia West Africa, one of the partners alongside the New Zealand operator in the consortium, would inject $1billion in NITEL’s infrastructure within 15 months of the conclusion of the deal, according to Brymedia CEO, Adrian Wood.
Brymedia’s expansion plans for NITEL include increasing the capacity of undersea cable SAT-3 and the modernization of the company’s mobile and fixed-line units. NITEL currently has only 45,000 fixed lines and a reported $500 million debt, losing market share to competitors MTN Nigeria and Zain Nigeria.
Nigeria is Africa’s most-populous nation, with more than 140 million people and the continent’s fastest-growing telecommunications market.
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