Vodacom Group announced on Monday that on 7 October 2024, Egypt’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), represented by the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), awarded Vodafone Egypt a 5G licence at a cost of $150 million, or approximately R2.6 billion. Additionally, Vodafone Egypt extended its existing licences for five more years, now valid until 2039, for an additional $17 million or R264 million.
The total amount of $167 million, or about R2.9 billion, is due for payment by 31 January 2025.
This development follows Egypt’s recent economic challenges; as of May 2024, the country has been placed on the watchlist for hyperinflation due to rising inflation, currency devaluation, and increasing public debt.
“From a financial performance perspective, I am particularly pleased with the manner in which our Egyptian business navigated its way through a material currency devaluation to produce R13 billion in service revenue, underpinned by a stellar 44.1% growth in local currency,” said Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub.
“This was supported by strong customer engagement in connectivity and excellent growth in Vodafone Cash, and contributed to a 5.9% increase in customers to 48.3 million in Egypt.”
Vodacom completed its acquisition of Vodafone Egypt in December 2022. The previous year, it had reached an agreement to acquire a 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt for approximately R48.1 billion ($2.738 billion). The deal was settled through the issuance of 241,976,243 new Vodacom Group shares and an additional cash payment of about R10.8 billion.
At the time, Vodacom stated that acquiring Vodafone Egypt, one of Africa’s leading telecom operators, was a strategic move to advance its connectivity and financial services ambitions. As a market leader, Vodafone Egypt is well-positioned to capitalize on growth opportunities in the fast-evolving Information and Communications Technology (ICT) market.
