FT wooed by Kenyan fiber contracts

France Telecom brought the curtain down on a long-running battle with the Kenyan government over Telekom Kenya after securing lucrative fiber network management contracts in the country, according to local press reports.
 
Telekom Kenya will take over the running of the government’s stake in local fiber firm Teams, in a deal said to be worth millions of dollars to France Telecom, which holds a 51% stake in the carrier, The East African said.
 
France Telecom will also be given an exclusive contract to operate and maintain the nationwide NOFBI fiber optic network, the paper reported.
 
The contracts are part of a deal thrashed out between the government and telco earlier this month.
 
While full details of the agreement have yet to be confirmed, the paper states that the government will also cough up $13.75 million (€11.1 million) to cover debts owed to Telekom Kenya by various ministries; pay a $3.75 million debt owed to the telco by a national broadcaster; pump $862,500 into Telekom Kenya’s pension fund; and pay for a 3G license for the carrier, worth $10 million.
 
France Telecom had demanded $325 million in compensation from the government, after claiming key assets were stripped from Telekom Kenya shortly before it acquired its majority stake in 2007. The telco also sought control of the fiber networks Africa’s Business Daily reported.