Request for Expressions of Interest/Pre-Qualification at The Liquidator of NITEL and MTEL
Privatisation, Through Guided Liquidation, of Nigerian Telecommunications Plc (NITEL) RC6773 in Liquidation AND Nigerian Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL) RC293531 in Liquidation
Request for Expressions of Interest/Pre-Qualification for Acquisition and Operation of the Business Units and Assets of NITEL and MTEL
Background
The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) through the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) has approved the privatisation of Nigerian Telecommunications Plc (NITEL) and its subsidiary, Nigerian Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL), through a guided liquidation strategy. The strategy is in conformity with the provisions of the Company and Allied Matters Act 1990 (CAMA) and the Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialization) Act 1999.
1.1 NTEL was incorporated as a limited liability company in December 1984 and is currently owned 93.3% by the FGN and 6.7% by First Bank of Nigeria Plc. NITEL formally commenced operations in 1985.
1.2 In 1996, the FGN established the Nigerian Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL) to provide cellular services. (and thus transferred NITCL’s cellular operations to MTEL) Following the auction of digital Mobile Licenses by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in February 2001, NITEL acquired a GSM license which it transferred to MTEL in March 2003.
1.3 Based on an application filed before it, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday. 14 March 2014, ordered the winding up of NITEL and appointed Otunba Olutola O. Senbore as the Liquidator of the two companies.
- Invitation for EOLs/Prequalification for Bidding
The Liquidator of NITEL and MTEL now invites Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from interested and capable investors to be prequalified to bid and purchase the business undertakings and the assets of NITEL and MTEL as single companies or joint ventures. Applicants should submit their EOIs to the Liquidator following the procedures described in Section 5 of this advert
- Description of Business Units/Assets
NITEL is licensed as the First National Telecommunications Carrier/Operator in Nigeria. Its huge telecommunications infrastructure including its widely distributed fixed wired lines stands it out as the potential leading telecommunications service provider in Nigeria. It has a telecommunications submarine cable international gateway, fibre optic cable networks and extensive rights of ways for country wide underground cable network and right of way for underground cable network in most of the major cities in Nigeria. The assets can be generally categorised as follows:
i) NITEL Assets
a. The Licences and The Spectrum (Proprietary Assets)
b. Nationwide Fixed Wired Networks
c. National Right of Way Duct System
d. Fibre Optic Transmission Backbone
e. CDMA Network System
f. International Gateway Earth Stations
g. Microwave Transmission Equipment/Network and Towers
h. Other Core assets
ii) MTEL Assets
a. The Licences and The Spectrum (Proprietary Assets)
b. National Right of Way
c. MTEL GSM Network
1) Mobile Switching Centres (MSCs)
2) Base Station Controllers (BSCs)
3) Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs)
4) General Packet Radio Services (GPRS)
d. Analog (TACs) System
e. Other Assets
iii) SAT-3
SAT-3 International Submarine Cable (NITEL has 6.32% shareholding in the SAT-3 Consortium)
- Outline Transaction Timeframe
The transaction is planned to be concluded within six months from the date the Court Order for the winding up of NITEL and MTEL was granted, the 14th of March 2014. This advert for EOIs will run for about three weeks in June, 2014. Pre-qualification of applicants will take place within two weeks of closure of the deadline for receipt of EOIs Pre-qualified bidders will be issued with Request for Proposals and other bidding documents. Data room and physical due diligence on the assets by bidders will take place between 18 July and 8 August 2014. Deadline for submission of technical and financial proposals is around 15 August 2014 Assessment of proposals and negotiation with successful bidders is planned to take place in September 2014. Financial Closure of Transaction and Handover of assets to successful bidders is expected to occur in December 2014.
- Application Procedures and Requirements
5. 1 Contents of Application
Interested investors in NITEL and MTEL should write to the Liquidator for prequalification on or before 30 June 2014 enclosing the following verifiable documents:
a) Profile of the Applicant detailing name of the company, the main shareholders, the ownership structure, the contact persons, offices and postal addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses.
b) Applicant’s technical, operational and financial capability profile including the number of years of operations in telecommunications business in the country of operations and in a developing country.
c) Certificate issued by the regulator to the applicant (or the applicant’s technical operator) in telecommunications business in the country of operations and/or in a developing county must be provided Failure to present this certificate shall lead to disqualification.
d) Number of fixed and mobile subscribers on applicant’s networks as at 31st December 2013 (where applicable).
e) Composition and profile of the management team, showing qualifications and posts held to date years of experience in telecommunications industry and of employment in the company.
f) Audited financial statements for the last five years and most recent management accounts.
g) Evidence of sound financial standing inclusive of details of bankers, with authorization for the Liquidator to seek confirmation/information from the bankers.
h) Agreements that provide evidence of alliances/technical partnerships among the applicants (if applicable).
i) A description of the Applicant’s vision, mission and strategy (action plan) for investments to rehabilitate, develop and expand the infrastructure.
5.2 Qualification Criteria
To be considered for the shortlist, bidders must:
- Score a minimum total of 75 percent points for the requirements described above, in addition to the under-listed mandatory requirements.
ii. Possess a minimum of 5 years cognate experience of operations in the telecommunications industry in fixed CDMA and/or mobile telecommunications system.
- Applicant’s tangible net worth must not be less than USD200 million.
iv. Provide evidence of compliance with Regulatory Authorities directives in the applicant’s country of operation.
Applicants interested in NITEL must in addition to the above requirements possess:
- Minimum subscriber base of one million in fixed/CDMA lines.
Applicants Interested in MTEL must in addition to the above requirements:
- Have a minimum of 10million subscribers on their network.
5.3 Packages for Pre-qualification
The EOI may be for ALL, ANY or a Combination of the following:
- The combined businesses assets and licences of NITEL and MTEL.
- The businesses, assets and licenses of NITEL or MTEL separately.
- Percentage interest held in SAT-3 Consortium.
- Identifiable assets capable of generating viable business units.
- Preference will be given to those who express interest in the whole of items (i) to (iii) above.
5.4 Procedures for the submission of Expression of Interest (EOIs)
The EOI must be submitted in a sealed envelope containing one original and seven copies (plus an electronic copy preferably in Microsoft word in compact disc) duly signed by the authorized representative of the applicant and delivered to the Liquidator of NITEL and MTEL at the address stated below not later than 5pm on 30th June 2014.
5.5 Evaluation of EOIs
All EOIs received will be evaluated for prequalification purposes by an Evaluation Committee approved by the Committee of Inspection.
(a) EOIs will be first subjected to preliminary examination for completeness of information and responsiveness to the pre-qualification criteria. Only EOIs with sufficient information and documentation will be further evaluated for prequalification.
(b) An EQI must comply with all government statutory requirements in tax, pensions, and financial regulations to be eligible for evaluation.
(c) Evaluation will be based on assessment of applicant’s profile and value development proposition for the telecommunications sector using the facilities being offered for sale Only respondents that attain the minimum cut-off point will be prequalified.
(d) Only prequalified candidates will be issued with Request for Proposal documents for submission of detailed technical and financial proposals.
(e) This prequalification exercise is not an offer, and will not lead directly to any contract with an applicant. It will only be the basis for making a shortlist of bidders.
(f) All submissions shall be at the cost of the applicants.
The evaluation will be based on verification of credible information and documents submitted by the applicants. Applicants therefore should exercise due care about the veracity of the information submitted in their EOIs, Any misleading or unreliable information submitted may lead to disqualification.
5.6 Notification of Results
Prequalified applicants will be informed in writing of their prequalification not later than 17 July 2014, Only successful applicants will be so advised. BPE and the Liquidator will not entertain any enquiries from unsuccessful applicants in respect of their applications and will not give reasons for unsuccessful applications.
5.7 Communication
All enquiries, Expressions of Interest and Applications should be addressed to:
The Liquidator, Nigerian Telecommunications Plc (NITEL),
The Liquidator, Nigerian Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL)
C/O Bureau of Public Enterprises
No. 11,0sun Crescent, Off Ibrahim Babangida Boulevard
Maitama District
Abuja, FCT, Nigeria
Dated 9 June 2014
