NATCOM Consortium has been given the go ahead to pay the sum of $252 million for the purchase of the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) and Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL).
The firm emerged the preferred bidder at the end of the bidding exercise for the sale of the two moribund government business concerns.
The National Council on Privatisation chaired by Vice President Namadi Sambo at the State House, on Thursday ratified the sale of NITEL and MTEL to the Consortium.
Chairman, Technical Committee of the NCP, Atedo Peterside, while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the meeting said the preferred bidder is now expected to commence documentation and payments now that the sale has been ratified by the Council.
“At the end of the privatisation exercise, there was one bidder. Two were pre-qualified initially but only one attained the pass mark.
“That was NATCOM Consortium with $252million.
“The NCP has confirmed the process. We now have a preferred bidder ratified by the NCP.
“Usually, what follows now are documentation and payment,” Peterside said.
Meanwhile, the Council according to the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Musa Mohammed Sada, also received reports on the monitoring and evaluation of the entities so far privatised by government.
He said this was necessary to ensure that the objectives of privatisation are met by the new owners.
Sada said from the report, most of the companies evaluated were not doing badly but hastened to add that the council observed that the firms needed to be supported through favourable government policies.
