Vodacom on Tuesday announced it has restructured its agreement to acquire Neotel to exclude certain mobile assets and include a roaming deal.
The news comes a fortnight after the South African mobile operator called a halt to the regulatory process surrounding its planned takeover of Neotel to give it time to renegotiate the deal. The Competition Commission had suggested a number of conditions should be imposed on the transaction, including investment commitments and a block on Vodacom using Neotel’s mobile spectrum for two years.
The new deal will see Vodacom acquire Neotel’s fixed-line assets, but will exclude its mobile spectrum and electronic communications network licences, the telco explained, in a stock exchange statement.
In addition, Neotel will offer roaming rights to all mobile network operators in South Africa, including Vodacom.
The company did not comment on any changes to the price of the deal.
Vodacom agreed to acquire Neotel from India’s Tata Communications for 7 billion rand (around €470 million at current exchange rates) in May 2014.
The deal got the go-ahead from the telecoms regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), earlier this year, subject to conditions relating to Black Economic Empowerment and the rollout of broadband infrastructure services. The Competition Commission then recommended that the deal be approved, subject to conditions, and passed it on to the Competition Tribunal, which was due to open the floor to comments from rival operators when Vodacom called a halt to proceedings, according to South Africa’s Business Day.
Other South African operators have expressed concerns about the deal, since it brings together the country’s largest mobile operator with its second fixed-line national operat or. Neotel has failed to build up a significant share of the fixed-line market since it was licensed in 2005 as an alternative to the incumbent, but it could well prove an asset to Vodacom.
Vodacom and Neotel have submitted details of the revised deal to the Competition Tribunal, which will discuss it at a pre-hearing on Thursday.
