/ 25 March 2009

New chief for Cell C

Cell C has appointed a new chief executive officer, the country’s third largest cellphone operator said on Wednesday.

”Cell C is pleased to announce the appointment of Lars P Reichelt as the new chief executive officer of the company with immediate effect,” the company said in a statement.

Reichelt had held various senior positions in mobile businesses including the CEO of Banglalink, Orascom’s venture in Dhaka, CEO of Telefonica 3G Mobile in Zurich and head of Wireless for Yahoo Europe in London.

He was also COO of cellphone operator ONE in Vienna and a senior consultant with Monitor Company in Milan, London and Cambridge.

Reichelt will replace Jeffrey Hedberg who, according to media reports, had been offered a post with Telkom to oversee a merger with Cell C.

Hedberg would continue in his role as chairperson of Virgin Mobile South Africa (VMSA), the statement said.

”I will work closely with the VMSA management team during its re-positioning.

”I am also currently considering new and challenging roles, within and outside of the Oger Group,” Hedberg said.

Simon Duffy, chairperson of Cell C, said the company was fortunate to have attracted a candidate of Reichelt’s calibre.

Reichelt will move his family to South Africa in the near future, the statement said.

Cell C is controlled by Oger Telecom, which is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. — Sapa