Millicom to sell its Rwanda business to Bharti Airtel

Millicom has signed an agreement for the sale of its Rwanda operations to subsidiaries of Bharti Airtel Limited.

The total consideration of the transaction is approximately 6x 2017 adjusted EBITDA, payable over two years, consisting of a mix of cash, vendor loan note and earn out. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

Mauricio Ramos, CEO of Millicom, commented: “The sale of our business in Rwanda is in line with our strategy to focus on providing advanced fixed and mobile data services in Latin America. We are very grateful to the government of Rwanda for their support throughout the last eight years, which allowed us to extend digital inclusion to thousands of Rwandans.”

Following the signing of the deal, the 370 million customers of Tigo will now join the network of Airtel Rwanda. The procurement will put Airtel Rwanda the second largest operator in the country hence increasing its revenue gains of over USD 80 million and also revenue market share of over 40%.

Mr Ramos added that the company was grateful to all employees, whose drive and commitment enabled Tigo Rwanda to become a leading provider of digital services in the country.

“We are confident that Bharti Airtel will build on the strength of Tigo Rwanda and enhance the services provided to customers,” he said.

The move to sell its Rwanda operations comes months after Millicom, the parent company of mobile operator Tigo Ghana Limited, also announced that it had completed the transaction announced on March 3, 2017, with Bharti Airtel Limited (“Airtel”), the parent company of Airtel Ghana, to combine their operations in Ghana.