Liquid Telecom has announced the acquisition of Rwanda’s fixed line operator, Rwandatel, for an undisclosed amount, including its copper and fibre network as well as the company’s customer base.
The deal however does not include most of the land owned by Rwandatel.
HumanIPO reported in January Liquid had acquired a number of companies utilising fibre infrastructure, including Altech’s East African operations, and currently has a fibre network stretching 13,000km through Kenya, Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, DRC, Lesotho and South Africa.
According to the Liquid’s chief executive officer (CEO) Nic Rudnick, Rwanda provides a climate where most investors are willing to venture, with the move a strategic one to compliment their current network.
The company says that it will within weeks embark on rehabilitating the company’s infrastructure and connect businesses and homes with high speed communication.
Sam Nkusi, chairman of Liquid Telecom Rwanda, said: “Our priority is to quickly rehabilitate Rwandatel’s core network and to build out the access network in order to serve Rwanda’s enterprises and residences with the most reliable, high speed, and affordable telecommunications.
“Current customers can be assured of service continuity, new products and value added services along with improvements in network availability and performance.”
Prior to acquisition Rwandatel was facing liquidation after failing to pay its creditors, with Airtel having bought off its masts for (US$15.5 million) earlier the year.
