Reliance Communications (RCOM) has lost the race to acquire majority stake (51 per cent) in Telkom Kenya to France Telecom. The French company submitted the highest bid of $390 million. The other companies that were in the fray included South Africa’s Telkom and Lap Fund of Libya. Telkom Kenya, which has a monopoly in the fixed line segment with over 280,000 customers, will be given the licence to launch mobile phone operations in 2008. The Government of Kenya plans to dilute a further 30 per cent stake in Telkom Kenya through an initial public offering (IPO).
