The shareholders of Neotel and Vodacom SA, on Monday announced that they have favourably concluded an agreement on the commercial structure and terms to proceed for Vodacom to acquire 100 per cent of the shares of Neotel valued at an enterprise value of ZAR 7.0 billion. This follows the announcement late last year that the parties were entering into exclusive talks for a due diligence.

The structure of the deal and its commercial terms remain subject to regulatory and competition authority approvals and the parties will be immediately commencing the necessary processes in that regard.

“Tata Communications is pleased with the outcome of this deal. It is in line with our financial objectives while paving the way for Neotel to improve its value proposition in the South African market”, said Vinod Kumar, MD and CEO, Tata Communications.

“We are encouraged at the progress made to date and will focus now on ensuring compliance with the regulatory approvals processes and the engagement with the competition authorities. Neotel continues to grow in the South African market and with this, when approved, will enable a greater choice of products and services for our customers and increased competition, while Neotel continues to deliver improved services and grows its customer base”, said Sunil Joshi, MD & CEO of Neotel.

                                                 

"This transaction will impact the landscape of the Telecommunications industry in South Africa. We believe it will enhance the customer experience and benefit the South African public", said Kennedy Memani, Nexus Connexion.