Telecom Egypt (TE) has given EGP 15bn to Mobinil and Vodafone for infrastructure and international communications services, according to a TE statement issued Thursday.
The agreements signed by TE and the two companies are valid starting this month, with the Mobinil lasting for five years, and the contract with Vodafone lasting for three years.
The indicated timeframes are based on the choices made by each of the recipient companies, the statement highlighted.
Concerning the other agreement providing international telecommunications services, it will be valid for four years with each company, for which TE will acquire 35% of the revenues generated.
Through the duration of the agreements made with Mobinil and Vodafone, TE aims to acquire a minimum profit of EGP 3bn.
TE offers international telecommunications services for mobile operators as a commercial alternative instead of their obtaining the international gateways licence. The two mobile operators have the right to terminate the agreement in case they obtain it, the statement revealed.
The international gateways licence allows mobile operators to provide international call services to their subscribers.
Furthermore the licence can be acquired through a tender issued by the national telecommunication regulatory authority in Egypt (NTRA).
Etisalat, the fourth mobile operator in the country, is the only service provider after TE that obtained the licence, which it received in 2007.
Managing Director of Mobinil Yves Gauthier previously revealed that the company is interested in obtaining the gateway licence. The company, however, has accumulated loans worth EGP 8bn and is undertaking a financial restructuring plan that involves increasing capital, selling assets, and subsidising revenues to increase them.
Through the restructuring plan, the financing for the cost of the licence will take place, Gauthier said. In 2013, TE collected an amount of EGP 1bn as revenue generated from providing infrastructure services to all mobile operators in Egypt.
Meanwhile the total amount of revenue collected by mobile operators in Egypt amounted to approximately EGP 30bn.
