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VEON announces the sale of its Russian tower assets for $970 million

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Amsterdam, 6 September 2021 – VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON, Euronext Amsterdam: VEON), a leading global provider of connectivity and internet services, announced that it has reached agreement to sell its mobile network towers in Russia to Service-Telecom for a total
consideration of $970million. Service-Telecom is a well-known partner to PJSC
VimpelCom, which operates in Russia under the Beeline brand, and already
provides the company with passive infrastructure across various regions in
Russia. 

The sale reflects VEON’s continued focus on active portfolio management and
the pursuit of opportunities to realise the value of its infrastructure
portfolio. With over 50,000 towers across nine dynamic markets, it is one of
the industry’s largest.  

The transaction involves the sale of 100 percent of National Tower Company
(“NTC”), a subsidiary of VEON, which operates a portfolio of approximately
15,400 mobile network towers in Russia. All of the active
mobile network infrastructure currently operated by PJSC VimpelCom and the
majority of the rooftop towers will remain with the company.

Under the terms of the deal, PJSC VimpelCom and Service-Telecom have entered
into a long-term master agreement regarding the provision of tower
infrastructure services for an initial period of 8 years, and multiple
extensions of 8 years at the discretion of PJSC VimpelCom. Both parties will
additionally enter into a new build-to-suit program comprising of up to 5,000
sites by 2029. 

The master agreement provides a framework for a long-term strategic
partnership with Service-Telecom to pursue investments in network roll-out and
upgrade, and share the benefits from potential future infrastructure market
consolidation in Russia. The agreement also provides Beeline with strict
service commitments and protections enabling Beeline to place an even greater
focus on ongoing strategic initiatives and improve the quality of mobile
services for its customers.

The purchase price for the transaction of RUB70.65bn (USD970m equivalent)
corresponds to an EV/EBITDA multiple of 11.7x 2021 based on projected EBITDA of
NTC post-completion.

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing is
expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2021. 

Commenting on the transaction, Kaan Terzioglu, VEON’s Chief Executive
Officer, said: “Today’s transaction is a major step forward in realising the
value of VEON’s infrastructure portfolio for our shareholders. By entering into
a long-term partnership with a strong, experienced counterparty in Russia,
Beeline will enjoy the operational and financial flexibility to serve its
customers with market-leading services through one of the nation’s largest and
most technologically-advanced mobile networks. Moreover, this transaction
allows to release the capital to deleverage VEON’s balance sheet and invest in
critical aspects of active network and digital opportunities while achieving
more financial flexibility.”

Service-Telecom CEO Nikolay Berdin noted: “The agreement reached with VEON
is a key achievement for Service-Telecom on its way to becoming a leading
telecommunication infrastructure operator in Russia. With PJSC VimpelCom as our
partner, we expect to drive sustainable long-term growth in Russia while
constructing the infrastructure backbone of the digital economy and helping to
enhance mobile broadband connectivity for consumers.”

Disclaimer

This release contains “forward-looking statements”, as the phrase
is defined in Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and
Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking
statements are not historical facts, and include statements relating to, among
other things, expectations regarding the potential benefits of the transaction
described above. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and
uncertainties, many of which VEON cannot predict with accuracy and some of
which VEON might not even anticipate. The forward-looking statements contained
in this release speak only as of the date of this release. VEON does not
undertake to publicly update, except as required by U.S. federal securities
laws, any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after
such dates or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Furthermore,
elements of this release contain or may contain, “inside information” as
defined under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.

About VEON

VEON is a NASDAQ and Euronext Amsterdam-listed global provider of
connectivity and internet services. 

For more information visit: www.veon.com.

We’re a diverse group of industry professionals from all corners of the world. Our desire is to provide a high-quality telecoms publication that caters to an international market, offering the latest and most relevant telecoms information to businesses, entrepreneurs and enthusiasts.

Press Releases

Monty Mobile: The First Company in the Middle East & Africa to Provide 5G End-to-End Solutions for Telcos

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5G End-to-End Solutions for Telcos

Monty Mobile provides an in-house, cost-effective, well-optimized 4G+ and 5G end-to-end wireless solution serving both small and large-scale mobile and fixed operators targeting both urban and rural areas.

Moreover, operators are offered flexible payment plans for up to 5 years, first payment after 3 years, helping them stay ahead of their competitors.

This on- cloud solution guarantees improved scalability, mobility and security in addition to great savings on both CapEx and OpEx.

With this solution, Monty Mobile is introducing an alternative to Tier1 Telecom Suppliers such as Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia, and ZTE.

“The best is yet to come; stay connected!”, says Mountasser Hachem, Founder & Chairman of Monty Mobile.

More details regarding this full end-to-end solution will be disclosed in the Inside Telecom magazine next month in an exclusive interview.

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Press Releases

Africa’s Leading Independent Telecommunications Services Provider, Phase3 Telecom moves onto Digital Connectivity Enterprise in Nigeria and West African Sub-region

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The upgrades will cover security features, performance enhancements. agile update capacity and quality delivery mechanisms.

ABUJA, Nigeria, March 10, 2022: Africa’s leading independent aerial fiber optic network infrastructure and telecommunications services provider, Phase3 Telecom, is enabling advanced digital connectivity, improved performance and enhanced network security for enterprise. This drive is targeted at cost efficient and unified network endpoint management for businesses in Nigeria and the West African sub-region.

This development is also designed to amplify Phase3 enterprise value active network deployments for MSMEs, large scale corporates and institutions.

According to the company’s executive chairman – Stanley Jegede, “this expansive service optimization is targeted at improved coverage on Phase3 network routes through Africa as well as to assure solutions that help businesses  transform and scale seamlessly.

He says, “Phase3 current network upgrades is an ongoing exercise and will cover security features, performance enhancements, agile update capacity, and quality delivery mechanisms for enterprise segments. Especially in the areas of productive work-from-anywhere or do-business-from-anywhere and digitized remote connectivity solutions”.

In addition to the company’s focus to increase enterprise based networks data handling capacity and their capability to access data within dissimilar sources faster vis-a-vis smarter, as today’s global clime demands.

Jegede, in his concluding statement says, “Phase3 layered digital capabilities will both enhance Phase3 network architecture and compliment legacy connectivity service experience in remote locations with significant Phase3 presence and network access points.

About Phase3 telecom

Phase3 Telecom is a leading independent fiber optic infrastructure with Points-of-Presence (POPs), colocation, and NOCs in Nigeria. Issued a National Long Distance Operator (NLDO) license in 2003 by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and with a vibrant as well as a dedicated team of experienced professionals, we are the network of choice for high-performance, data-intensive and low latency connectivity that span dedicated internet access, MPLS VPN, metro ethernet, wide area network solutions etc. We currently operate across the ECOWAS region and international markets through strategic partnerships that allow us to connect our clients across 400 cities worldwide. And ours is an extensive and secure network with end-to-end capabilities that service providers and businesses can rely on to scale, manage costs and assure efficiency. As our network continues to evolve into other layered service streams, including cloud-based and network security solutions – our invaluable clients will continue to remain the core of every investment that we make; innovation that we create; and technology that we adopt during the 4th industrial revolution to position us as the network of the future.

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Press Releases

Digital Therapeutics Revenue from Health Insurers to Reach $8 Billion Globally by 2026

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Hampshire, UK – 14th March 2022: A new study from Juniper Research has found that digital therapeutics revenue from health insurers will increase to $8 billion by 2026, up from $1.1 billion in 2022; representing a growth of 610 percent over the next four years. Digital therapeutics are clinically validated software programs for the treatment of chronic medical conditions, either independently or in conjunction with other therapies.

The report found that digital therapeutics facilitate the proactive mitigation of chronic medical conditions before they require costly interventions; enabling health insurers to reduce long-term costs per patient. However, it highlighted that these savings will be limited to health insurers in developed regions, where consumer devices and digitalized health infrastructure are ubiquitous. As such, it noted that health insurers in Africa and Latin America will contribute less than 2 percent towards health insurer-led digital therapeutics revenue in 2026.

A new research, Digital Therapeutics & Wellness: Key Trends, Business Models & Market Forecasts 2022-2026, identified that insurers will also benefit from an ongoing shift among digital therapeutics vendors towards engagement- and results-based payments. It recommends that therapeutics providers looking to leverage this trend prioritize the development of performance benchmarks, as demonstrating improvement and preventing patient abandonment will become a direct monetary issue.

Machine Learning to Move into Advisory Role as Liability Issues Emerge

The report forecasts that the number of people using digital therapeutics will increase by 381% over the next four years, and recognizes that machine learning will be key to this growth by facilitating advanced data analytics, remote patient monitoring, and real-time conversational coaching. However, it cautioned that an ongoing lack of standards surrounding the use of machine learning within digital therapeutics will result in vendors limiting its role in their offerings.

Research author Adam Wears explained: “As developers and healthcare providers increasingly grapple with issues of liability and malpractice, machine learning will transition from a patient-facing role to a diagnostic tool offered through provider-facing dashboards; to be used by clinicians and specialists in a manner akin to traditional computer-aided diagnostics.”

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