Telecom Namibia has acquired mobile operator Leo, Telecom Namibia chairman Joseph Iita told local paper New Era. Iita said Telecom would issue a media statement later in the week. Leo's chief corporate and regulatory affairs officer, Stanley Similo, also confirmed the transaction but declined to give more details. Telecel Globe, a subsidiary of Orascom Telecom, sold Powercom, the company that controls Leo, to financial investors earlier this year. Leo is said to be carrying liabilities of over NAD 400 million as of the second quarter of this year. Telecom Namibia already offers a CDMA wireless service, and the takeover will allow it to expand into the GSM market. Leo competes against MTC, which is majority owned by the same state holding company, Namibia Post and Telecommunications Holdings, which also owns Telecom Namibia.
