Telekom Srpske
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Telekom Srpske a.d. | |
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| Type | Public (BLSE: TLKM-R-A) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1996 |
| Headquarters | Banja Luka, Bosnia |
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Products | Fixed and mobile lines, internet provider, ADSL |
| Website | TelekomSrpske.com |
A telecommunications company based in Banja Luka, Republika Srpska, Bosnia-Herzegovina. The company is the biggest in Republika Srpska and the biggest one listed on the Banja Luka Stock Exchange, with the market capitalisation of about €540m.
The company's main business are fixed and mobile telecommunications in domestic and international traffic. Other businesses include:
- directory inquires
- internet services provider
- design, construction, reconstruction and installation of TC devices, etc.
The company also owns the founding status shares in three companies, with a 100% ownership of the company "Telekard telefonske usluge", d.o.o. Banja Luka and TT "Inženjering" d.o.o. Banja Luka, and 20% of share in the Institute for International Law and International Cooperation, d.o.o Banja Luka.
According the Telekom Srpske website: "The mission of Telekom Srpske can be briefly defined as: Provision of high quality telecommunication services for the purposes of satisfying the clients’ demands and facilitating easier integration of economy and individuals into the informatics community, with due respect for interests of share holders and employees.
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[edit] History
Telekom Srpske traces its existence to PTT, the postal and telephony monopoly of the former Yugoslavia. After the brake-up of the country and the war in Bosnia, the structure of PTT changes significantly. In June 1992, the Government of Republika Srpska established the RS PTT Traffic Public Enterprise.
The division of the PTT Traffic Public Enterprise was then split in December 1996 into two independent poblic companies for telecommunications and for postal services.
The Telecommunications of Republic of Srpska plc (Telekom Srpske a.d.) has become a legal successor of the public company for telecommunications of Republika Srpska as of November 2002.
[edit] Financial performance
Telekom Srpske had revenues on BAM 344m (€176m) and net income of BAM 80m (€41m) in 2005.
It currently the number 1 player in Republika Srpska and has 35% market share in both the fixed and mobile telephony market in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The company's share price on BLSE has been doing very well and, since the establishment of the main market index, BIRS, it has significantly overperformed the index.
[edit] Privatisation
As of 2002, Telekom Srpske has been incorporated as stock company. Its current ownership structure is as follows:
- State capital 65 %
- Privatisation funds 10%
- Pension and disability insurance fund 10%
- Restitution fund 5%
- Other shareholders 10%
The Republika Srpska Government has declared Telekom Srpske a company of strategic importance and, therefore, the state capital is being privatised according to the special privatisation program enacted by the Government.
Telekom Srpske, has recently been put up for sale, with the tender due to close in November 2006. The RS Government has said that bidds bellow €400m will not be considered. The Austrian bank, Raiffeisen Investment has been appointed as the financial advisor to the government. The criteria that potential bidders must fulfil, including a current minimum of 800,000 fixed-line and 1.5m mobile users, suggest that the RS Government is hoping for an outside operator who is capable of investing in Telekom Srpske's infrastructure.
Companies that have bought the tender offer document and are potenitial bidders include:
- Telekom Austria (Austria), which has already stressed its interest a number of times, including in the CEO's interview with the Financial Times in August 2006.
- Telenor (Norway), which has recently expanded into Montenegro and Serbia
- Telekom Srbija (Serbia)
- Magyar Telekom (Hungary), Deutsche Telekom's Hungarian unit
- Sistema Telecom (Russia)
- France Télécom (France)
- Novator (Iceland)
- Elisa Corporation (Finland)
- Orascom Telecom (Egypt)
- Valiva (Switzerland)
- Planet Sky (Cyprus)
On December 5th 2006, the bids were opened at a joint-meeting of the Republic of Srpska Government and the Commission for the Privatization of Telekom Srpska.
Telekom Srbija offered 646 million euros for the majority shares of the Republic of Srpska’s telecommunications company, while the second highest bidder was Telekom Austria with an offer of 467 million euros.
