South African Minister of Public Enterprises Jeff Radebe has announced that Umthunzi Telecoms Consortium is the preferred bidder on the MTN tender that was placed on September 19 last year.
The government expects the transaction to be about R2,5-billion. Radebe said this is for 80,3-million shares held in MTN through the Transnet Group and Transnet M-Cell Trust.
Radebe said 75-million ordinary shares are held through the M-Cell Trust.
Transnet and the Second Defined Benefit Fund are the beneficiaries of the trust, he noted. The board of trustees of the trust, the board of trustees of the Second Defined Benefit Fund and the Transnet Board “have given their consent to this transaction. Government expects the deal to be closed within two weeks.”
The deal comes after a robust and competitive process, said Radebe at a press conference in Pretoria that was beamed to Cape Town.
Umthunzi Telecoms Consortium comprises the African Vanguard Social Development Trust, Ariska Investments, Newshelf 734, the Zungu Family Trust, Freefall Trading 165, New Adventure Investments 274, African Vanguard Rural Development Trust with Nozola Trust, Sarhwu Enablement Trust and the National Association of People living with HIV/Aids.
The other nine bidders were: Disability Empowerment Concerns and Sifikile Holdings, Sakhikamva Investments, Lembede-led Consortium, Samkela Consortium, Xitlati Telecommunications, Rand Merchant Bank and WipHold, Nexus Connexion and KREM Investment Holdings, the Glacier Consortium (Newshelf 664, Tirelo Capital and Nedbank) and PAF Investments.
The bid evaluation committee comprised representatives from the Department of Public Enterprises, the National Treasury and Transnet, with Hofmeyr as transaction advisors and APF Chartered Accounts as process monitoring consultants. — I-Net Bridge