Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel) has signed a share purchase agreement with the existing majority owners of Worldcall Telecom Limited, said a statement issued by the Worldcall Telecom. Omantel will acquire 60% of Worldcall shares from majority owners, and a further 5% from other shareholders through the securities market, for a total transaction value of $193 million. Dr Muhammed Bin Ali Al Wohaibi, CEO of Omantel, signed the agreement on behalf of Omantel while the agreement was inked by representatives of existing majority shareholders including Salmaan Taseer, amongst others. Dr Al Wohaibi termed Omantel s purchase of Worldcall shares a great milestone for the company in its first investment outside the Sultanate. He said that Omantel hopes this investment will be a first of a series of investments in line with its strategy to access and establish foothold in other markets within the region and beyond. Omantel s entry to the Pakistani market is important given that it is a fairly developed market with one of the highest population densities in the world. At the same time, low penetration in many telecommunications services such as broadband and location-specific telephony provides a significant opportunity for growth of telecommunications companies in the Pakistani market. According to the statement, Dr Al Wohaibi said Omantel would continue to have a minimum of 51% or majority stake in Worldcall even if certain institutions exercise conversion options post acquisition. These institutions had provided funding to Worlcall and have the option of converting their funds into shares. Omantel had announced earlier that the investment was expected to amount to $204 million. However, the devaluation of the Pakistani rupee against the dollar has had a positive impact for Omantel s investment, as the value of the deal at current exchange rate for Pakistani rupee comes to approximately $193 million. Dr Al Wohaibi said that Omantel s future outlook for the Pakistani market is promising due to great investment opportunities and a sustained economic development. Worldcall is licensed to provide diversified telecommunications services across Pakistan. Its revenue amounted to $72 million for fiscal year 2006-07 and declared post-tax profits of about $10 million. Worldcall holds market leadership position in the broadband retail operations in Pakistan through its extensive metro fibre and hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) deployments.
