KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait, June 9, (Agencies): Kuwait’s Zain telecom said on Wednesday it has posted an unaudited net profit of $2.7 billion from the sale of its African units to India’s Bharti Airtel for $10.7 billion.
The profit is from the amount the firm has received so far and it expects to achieve more profit when it receives the rest, Zain said in a statement posted on the Kuwait Stock Exchange website.
The Kuwaiti firm announced on Tuesday it has completed the deal to sell its operations in 15 African nations to Bharti Airtel following months of negotiations.
The company said that it has received $7.87 billion in cash and will receive $400 million more within 12 months after completing small requirements. Zain will also receive $700 million after one year as per the initial agreement.
Zain statement on Wednesday said the net income from the sale will appear in the company results for the second quarter.
Following the signing of the sale agreement late March, Zain said it expected to achieve $3.3 billion in profit.
Meanwhile, trading in the shares of Kuwait’s telecom Zain was to resume on Wednesday, the firm said in a statement on the Kuwaiti bourse website.
On Tuesday, Zain closed a $9 billion deal to sell most of its African assets to India’s Bharti.
The shares were halted on May 30 pending distribution of 2009 cash dividend of 170 fils per share, which excludes distribution from the deal.
The bourse statement said the dividend will be distributed on Thursday.
There are 1,000 fils to the dinar.
Elsewhere, India’s Bharti Airtel will offer affordable rates in Africa to boost usage, but has no plan for a price war, a top company executive said on Wednesday, a day after the firm completed a deal to buy the African assets of Kuwait’s Zain.
The Indian telecom market leader has taken over mobile operations in 15 African countries in the $9 billion deal that makes it the world’s fifth-biggest cellphone company with 180 million customers in 18 countries.
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KUWAIT: Kuwaiti mobile operator Zain said on Wednesday it had appointed Emad Makiya as chief executive for its operation in Iraq.
Makiya, who specialises in data analysis and telecommunications, worked for Motorola Networks and held various positions at NASA, the company said. He will take over on Tuesday.
Zain, which has sold most of its African assets to India’s Bharti Airtel in a $9 billion deal, is overhauling management in line with its new strategy to concentrate on Middle East operations.