NATCOM Consortium, the winner of the bid for national telecoms company NITEL, has paid the outstanding sum of the $252.25 million it bid for NITEL as confirmed by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) – the government agency that is in charge of the liquidation of NITEL and its mobile company MTEL.
BPE’s Head of Public Communications, Chigbo Anichebe, said NATCOM paid the 70 per cent balance four days ahead of the April 7, 2015 deadline.
He said: “Under the guided liquidation strategy, all the core assets and business undertakings of NITEL and MTEL were to be sold to a qualified bidder by the liquidator under the general guidance of NCP.
“Thus, the bidder that acquires the assets of NITEL and MTEL will pledge to continue to operate the assets to provide telecoms services. This is as against the traditional liquidation of an enterprise by assets stripping.”
NATCOM had paid over US$75 million which was 30% of the bid sum as a condition set by BPE.
