Etisalat Eyes Syria, Lebanon and Libya

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ABU DHABI — Emirates Telecommunication Company, or Etisalat,

By Haseeb Haider

Published: Wed 9 Dec 2009, 11:13 PM

Last updated: Thu 18 Jul 2024, 10:06 AM

Plans to invest in telephone services in Syria and Lebanon as the governments of those countries begin selling off their state-owned telecoms assets in coming months.

Etisalat, which already runs phone companies in 15 countries, hopes to broaden its overseas operations still further when Libya declares the winner of its auction of a third GSM licence. Etisalat is a strong contender for that business, said Jamal Al Jarwan, chief executive officer for Etisalat International Investments.

Al Jarwan on Tuesday told a business conference organised by MEED magazine that Etisalat wants to become one of the ten largest telecom companies in the world. To help achieve this goal, it wants to acquire other companies soon to take advantage of lower market valuations resulting from the global economic downturn, he said.

Etisalat will take part in the privatisation of Syria’s lone mobile telecom operation as well as of Lebanon’s two state-run telecom operators, Al Jarwan said to reporters on the sidelines of the conference in the capital. Both countries want greater competition in their phone services.

He added that it would be premature for him to comment on the amount of investment a Libyan licence for GSM mobile and fixed telephone lines would require, should Etisalat emerge the winner of the bidding in that North African country.

Etisalat announced in October that it had acquired the Sri Lankan telecoms firm Tigo for $207 million. Al Jarwan said his cash-rich company would start operations in India during the first quarter of next year and that it is looking at other markets in Asia, Africa and Middle East region with interest.

“These regions have growth potential in the telecom sector,” he told the conference.

Etisalat has ample cash reserves of Dh10.84 billion, and its free cash flows exceeds Dh5.7 billion, the chief executive said.

The company, with assets exceeding Dh69 billion, reported a 6 per cent year-to-year growth in revenues during the nine months ending September 30. Its net profit for the same period grew by 9 per cent, while its earnings per share swelled by 8 per cent, he told the conference.

haseebhaider@khaleejtimes.com