By Staff Reporter
New mobile phone operator Cell One yesterday signed a N$535 million long-term financing deal with an investment-banking consortium, including the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN), Investec and Nedbank Capital.
DBN will provide N$60 million of the total, while Investec and Nedbank Capital will split the remaining N$475 million equally.
The company said the purpose of the long-term financing is to allow Cell One to continue with the rollout of its mobile phone network.
Together with equity from shareholders and inflows from operations, the company estimates it will be able to invest N$1 billion in network development over the next three years.
At a function to mark the occasion yesterday the company announced that it has so far achieved 60% network coverage across the country.
The company is however still very cagey about subscriber numbers, saying only the number is somewhere between 25,000 and 100,000 subscribers.
CEO of Cell One, Lars Christian Iuel, said the rate at which the company has signed up subscribers is in line with projection in their business plan.
“But I would have liked to see even faster growth. I’m an impatient guy,” he said.
Speaking at the event, he said it was important for Cell One to deal with lenders, who both know the African continent as a market, but also South Africa and Namibia as telecommunications markets.
The debt consists of various branches of long-term facilities structured to suit Cell One’s requirements, representing the first time banks have offered such facilities in the Namibian Telecommunications arena.
The parties appointed and mandated Investec and Nedbank Capital as lead arrangers for the Cell One project finance debt.
In addition, they act as primary lenders along with the participation by the DBN, which will participate in debt facilities.
Unlike the majority of new mobile cellular entrants who piggy-back on existing infrastructure, Cell One is building its own national network, largely outsourcing the equipment supply and operations to Nokia-Siemens Networks to ensure stability and quality.
Norwegian Telecoms Management Partners (TMP) is the managing shareholder, overseeing the network and marketing of Cell One’s services to individuals and corporates in Namibia.
Other shareholders in the venture along with TMP are Nampower, Namic, Old Mutual Namibia and the PowerCom Educational Trust.