Source: Date: Updated: |
TheBahamasInvestor.com
Friday, May 27, 2016 Friday, May 27, 2016 |
Following an extensive bid process, Cable Bahamas (CBL) has been selected as the provider of the jurisdiction’s second mobile service.
Prime Minister Perry Christie made the announcement in his budget speech in Parliament this week.
The formal announcement follows the completion of negotiations including the commitment to have a separate entity set-up to be licensed. This “NewCo” will be 48.25 per cent owned by CBL and 51.75 per cent owned by “HoldingCo” – both entities will be 100 per cent Bahamian owned.
Prime Minister Christie said: “In light of CBL having met the remaining requirements of the Request For Proposal (RFP), I am pleased to advise that the government will notify the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) to proceed with the licensing of NewCo.”
For its part, CBL said it was “proud and excited to quickly move forward” to complete the remaining formalities required by URCA so that NewCo can begin to provide mobile services to consumers in The Bahamas.
The bid process has been extensive, including an in-depth financial and technical assessment of the company and its capabilities.
CBL president Anthony Butler stated: “Now, the hard work begins and our focus will be to fulfill our promise to the Bahamian community to provide the best mobile services and applications in the world.”
“We understand the market and the expectations of Bahamians. The mobile service needs to be reliable, affordable and fully support applications that customers want to use, and that is what Bahamians can look forward to from us.”