The Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Communications Commission have taken steps aimed at saving the Etisalat from being taken over by a consortium of banks led by Access Bank.
A meeting between the officials of Etisalat Nigeria and the two regulators has reportedly been scheduled for Wednesday, June 21.
Competent sources told Channels Television that several meetings were ongoing at the NCC and the CBN after talks between about 10 Nigerian banks and Etisalat Nigeria broke down.
The sources confirmed that part of the $1.2 billion bank credit obtained by Etisalat Nigeria has been paid back since 2013 when the loans were first structured.
The three parties are also expected to issue a joint statement on the matter on Wednesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Etisalat Group, the parent company of Etisalat Nigeria, informed the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange that a group of Nigerian commercial banks refused to agree to the restructuring of the debt (which amounts to N541 billion) owed by the company.
The telecoms group said in a statement that its total shares in Etisalat Nigeria have been transferred to United Capital Trustees Limited.
The deadline for the transfer of the shares has been agreed to extend till 5:00pm Nigerian time on Friday, June 23.
Abu-Dhabi based Etisalat group established Etisalat Nigeria with effective 45 per cent and 25 per cent ordinary and preference shares respectively. Reuters quoted an official of Etisalat Nigeria as saying that discussions with the group of Nigerian commercial lenders were ongoing to find a “non-disruptive” solution to the debt.
