Syriatel To Manage Yemen's HitsUnitel Mobile Telecom Co

BEIRUT (Zawya Dow Jones)--Damascus-based Syriatel Mobile Telecom has taken a seat on the board of directors of HitsUnitel and will manage and operate the telecom company, which will be the third mobile telecom business to start operations in Yemen.

UNITEL, set up by China Mobile Telecommunications Corp. and a group of Yemeni and Arab businessmen, was awarded the Yemeni license for $149 million in 2005. Last year, Saudi-based House for Integrated Technology Systems and UNITEL merged to form HitsUnitel.

Chief communication officer at Syriatel, Magda Sakr, told Zawya Dow Jones that HitsUnitel increased its capital to $190 million during the company's first general meeting on Jan. 15.

Sakr didn't reveal how much stake Syriatel holds in the new firm but earlier reports stated that Syriatel bought a 10% stake in HitsUnitel for $40 million.

Some of the shareholders in HitsUnitel include Damascus-based Syriatel, Saudi- based Al-Dar Telecommunications, Kuwait Finance and Investment Co. and House for Integrated Technology Systems.

HitsUnitel will join private-sector mobile phone operators Sabafon (Yemen Company for Mobile Telephony) and Spacetel Yemen, which was the first operator to provide GSM mobile services in Yemen .

Sakr said that HitsUnitel's the board of directors appointed as the company's chairman Nader Al Kalai, who is Syriatel's chief executive.

HitsUnitel expects to be operational in mid-2007."

Posted to the site on 21st January 2007