|
Antel
Holdings Ltd Purchases KPNQwest's Central European Assets
Moscow - August 7, 2002 -
Antel Holdings Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Group MENATEP, today signed a
purchase and sale agreement to acquire 100 percent of KPNQwest Ebone Central
Europe B.V. (formerly GTS Central Europe Holdings B.V.) from banking syndicate
led by Citigroup for a total equity consideration of €36.5 million, it was
announced by Platon Lebedev, director of Group MENATEP.
The amount of the consideration
will be made final pending the result of a full financial audit of KPNQwest
Ebone Central Europe B.V. The audit is being performed by Ernst & Young. The
purchase will be completed after fulfillment of certain conditions, including
approval by the District Court in Amsterdam and the creditors committee, within
a period of up to 20 days following the signing of the purchase and sale
agreement.
"The purchase will expand
the scope of Antel Holdings Ltd's operations, by giving it a strong entry point
into Central Europe's most dynamic and developed telecommunications markets. The
companies of KPNQwest Central Europe B.V. complement Antel Holdings' current
operating companies in the United States and the Russian Federation and target
the same core customer base of large corporate clients and medium and small
businesses. Antel Holdings Ltd is committed to further developing and
strengthening the market position of the KPNQwest Central Europe B.V. companies,"
said Alexander Kabanovsky, director of Antel Holdings Ltd.
Antel Holdings is also exploring
possible strategic partnership opportunities to develop its business interests
further. Antel Holdings Ltd is advised by investment banks CET and Eurasia
Capital Partners, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey as legal advisors, and Ernst
& Young as auditors. Bear Stearns International Limited is acting for the
banking syndicate, led by Citibank, with the cooperation of the receivers of
KPNQwest NV, Mr Eddie Meijer and Mr Jan van Apeldoorn, as sellers.
KPNQwest Central Europe B.V is
the largest alternative telecom operator in Central Europe. The company owns and
operates five alternative carriers in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary,
Romania and Slovakia, providing telecommunications services to large
corporations, medium and small businesses as well as residential clients in
these markets. It has approximately 31,000 customers. The companies focus on the
provision of bundled services (voice, data and IP) and building broadband local
services on a demand-driven basis under the "GTS" brand name in the
Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, "KPNQwest" in Romania, and under
the "Internet Partners" brand name in Poland. On a consolidated level,
the companies of KPNQwest Central Europe B.V. reported revenues of €136 133
million in 2001.
Group MENATEP is an international
diversified holding company that controls assets in excess of US $20 billion. (For
more information about Group MENATEP, please visit): www.groupmenatep.com).
For further information please
contact:
Alexander Kabanovsky
Director
Antel Holdings Ltd
Tel: +7 095 748 5005
Fax: +7 095 748 5002
Andrey Vladimirov-Kryukov
Director
Antel Holdings Ltd
Tel: +7 095 748 5005
Fax: +7 095 748 5002
For the banking syndicate to
KPNQwest:
Gavin Anderson & Company
Halldor Larusson, +44 207 554 1443
Constantijn van Rietschoten, +31 10 201 3621
|
