RIYADH: Saudi telecom provider Zain KSA saw its shares rise, following the transfer of its subsidiary Zain Business Limited to the Public Investment Fund for an amount of SR10,000 ($2666), renaming it to The Golden Lattice Investment Co.
Zain KSA’s shares rose 2.09 percent to end Sunday’s session at SR12.68, compared with SR12.42 at the previous close.
The PIF previously joined with Prince Saud bin Fahad and Sultan Holding Co. in February to acquire an $807 million stake in Zain KSA’s tower infrastructure, a bourse filing showed.
The Communications and Information Technology Commission on Sept. 7 issued no-objection voting to the agreement between the parties to take over at least 8,069 of the telecom tower sites owned by Zain KSA.
The company, formally known as Mobile Telecommunication Co., will transfer 80 percent of its share capital to the acquirers upon completion of the deal.
As per the offer with the PIF, the company will grant the sovereign wealth fund the right to buy the remaining 20 percent stake at a certain amount.
The three deals will see the telecom firm sell its towers infrastructure comprising 8,069 towers while retaining wireless communication antennas, software, technology, and intellectual property.
The transaction will result in SR1.1 billion from the transfer of towers over the next 18 months to the financial closing.
As per its latest earnings results, the telecom operator’s profit more than doubled to SR214 million for the first half of 2022.
Its profit surged 157 percent from SR83 million in the same period a year earlier on the back of higher revenue.
Revenue went up from SR3.8 billion to SR4.4 billion driven by the growth in the business-to-business, fifth generation and other revenue streams in addition to a post-pandemic return of international visitors.
Profits for the third quarter and the first nine months of 2022 are to be announced soon by the telecom provider.
Founded in 2008, Mobile Telecommunication Co. Saudi Arabia offers a wide range of telecommunications services, including fixed line and mobile telephony services, as well as Internet services under the brand name Zain Saudi Arabia. Zain was the third mobile network operator in Saudi Arabia.
