Etisalat in N377bn Debt Crisis,Pleads with 13 Banks

The Nigerian affiliate of AbuDhabi-listed telecoms company, Etisalat, is in talks with 13 Nigerianbanks to renegotiate the terms of a $1.2 billion loan it took out four yearsago after missing a payment.

At current official rate, the loan, without interest stands atN377 billion.
The Vice President for Regulatory Affairs at Etisalat Nigeria, Ibrahim Dikko,said the company missed payments due to the economic downturn in Nigeria, acurrency devaluation  and dollar shortages on the country’s interbankmarket.

“We are in discussions with our bankers and have been for quitea while. They have not taken over the business and we are hoping that we canresolve the issue and find a way to renegotiate terms,” Dikko told Reuters.

Emirates Telecommunications Group(Etisalat) owns a 40 percent stake in its Nigerian affiliate, which accountedfor around 3.7 per cent of the group’s revenue in 2013.

Etisalat Nigeria signed a $1.2 billion medium-term facility with 13 Nigerianbanks in 2013, which it used to refinance an existing $650 million loan andfund a modernisation of its network.