Sudatel targets 16m subscribers by 2020

13/05/2015 01:17 AST

Sudatel, a Sudan-based telecommunications and internet service provider, is expected to grow in the next few years, with plans to increase its subscriber base by 35 per cent to 15-16 million, according to the company's chief executive officer, Tarig Zainelabdein.

Sudatel is also set to back its growth plans with $267 million (Dh980 million) worth of investments over the next five years. Around 30 per cent of the money will come from equities, while the rest will be financed by banks.

"We are working on the complete transformation from mobile platform to ICT (Information and Communication Technology) platform," Zainelabdein said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of the UAE/Sudan Investment Forum, which is being held in Abu Dhabi to boost investments and trade relations between both countries.

Discussing the company's performance, he said that subscriber numbers dropped three per cent between 2011 and 2013 - a period when the company encountered losses. Sudatel has managed to turn its finances around in 2014 to increase subscriber numbers and minimise losses.

"For the last three years, we had a challenge with large liabilities, so we started to pay for our liabilities now, and we did very well in 2014. We paid over 20 per cent of them in cash, and we rescheduled the rest of them," the CEO said.

Sudatel is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) and in Khartoum, with Zainelabdein citing positive performance in Abu Dhabi's market. He expected share prices to go even higher after the company's general assembly meeting at the end of this month.

"We estimate our share prices to increase five to seven per cent because we are announcing positive net profits after two of three consecutive years of losses. We're going to distribute dividend for the first time in three years," he said.

In 2014, Sudatel made $50 million in net profits, following $17 million worth of losses in 2013. In the first quarter of 2015, however, the company made $10 million in profits, and is expected to continue raising its net profits, with 2015's net profits estimated to be up five to 10 per cent on 2014.

The growth is supported by new revenue streams including wholesale, and clouds, among others.

Additionally, the company will float more shares on both markets it is listed on.

"We now have about 1.18 billion shares listed (in Abu Dhabi and Khartoum). The approved [figure] for Sudatel is 2.5 billion shares, so we will try to increase our capital. We're still in the process of deciding whether to open for all investors or a specific investor," Zainelabdein said.

Sudatel has a total subscriber base of 12 million people across Sudan and West Africa where it operates in Guinea-Conakry, Mauritania, Ghana, and Senegal. The company is also looking into entering a new market in Africa, though the CEO did not disclose which one.

The company is in the process of exiting Ghana, however, after facing losses in the country during the past three years.

"We are still holding our shares in Ghana, and it's still part of our books, but we've already started the process of selling it. We transferred 18 per cent of our share in Ghana to the new buyer and we'll transfer the rest before the end of this year after the buyer pays all of his liabilities," Zainelabdein said without disclosing the buyer's name.

Sudatel is also in negotiations with the government of South Sudan after suspending operations there on whether to resume or sell the assets.

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