Single licence by June THE LONG buzzed-about single telecoms licence for both mobiles and landlines will be activated within three months, according to Minister of Telecommunications Atef Helmy. The licence would see the fixed-line monopoly operator Telecom Egypt (TE) offering mobile services and the country's three mobile operators operating landline networks. TE's extraordinary general meeting on Sunday approved the amendment of various incorporation articles as part of preparations to transform the company into an integrated communications operator, making the required changes in management and operations. The new single licence is believed to benefit Telecom Egypt, whose landline revenues have been declining due to the growing trend of people opting to use mobile phones and the Internet instead of fixed lines. Telecom Egypt is already present in the mobile market through its 45 per cent stake in Vodafone Egypt, the country's largest mobile operator by number of subscribers. The other two mobile operators are Mobinil, owned by France Telecom, and Etisalat Misr, affiliated to the UAE-based Etisalat. Losses at Orascom Hotels THE PLUNGE in Egyptian tourist figures has negatively affected the results of Orascom Hotels, the Swiss-listed company owned by businessman Samih Sawiris. Last week, the company, which operates resorts such as Gouna in the Red Sea region of Egypt and the Alpine Andermatt development in Switzerland, said it expected to post a full-year net loss. According to Reuters, the group said revenue would fall by as much as one-fifth and its net loss would widen to between 145 million and 160 million Swiss francs ($166 to $183 million), from a 97 million franc net loss a year ago. Specific factors hitting Orascom include the lower capitalisation of financing costs, the devalued Egyptian currency, and impairments on investments and a review of taxation, the company said. Increased dividends for OW SHAREHOLDERS in Oriental Weavers (OW), the world's largest machine-woven carpet maker, will get a dividend of LE2 per share after the company's net profits for 2013 jumped by 30 per cent. Net profits climbed to LE 369.12 on sales of LE5.52 billion, 13 per cent higher than 2012 figures. The company paid a dividend of LE1.5 per share in 2012 and 2011. OW said it was considering splitting each of its shares into five in a bid to boost liquidity and trading, a move that pushed share prices up last week to their highest level since 2007. Series of IPOs hit the market WHILE Amer Group in November 2010 was Egypt's last initial public offering (IPO) on the stock exchange, a handful of companies are now also willing to offer their shares on the market. Both Etisalat Misr and Emaar Misr, the Egyptian arms of the UAE-based telecommunications and construction giants Etisalat and Emaar, are on the list of companies considering IPOs. The managing director of Emaar said that the IPO would finance the company's expansion in Egypt, especially the second phase of its Emaar Square Project. Emaar Egypt's revenues reached LE7 billion last year. The announcement came ten days after EFG-Hermes, the largest local investment bank, said it would be advising on three IPOs in Egypt, including Arabian Cement, during 2014. Good news for Centamin HIGHER production in mines operated by gold miner Centamin has made up for the decline in gold prices, pushing the company's 2013 profits up by one per cent to reach $243 million. Centamin's production rose by 36 per cent in 2013, beating its output target by 12 per cent, and the company aims to grow production further this year. Now in its fifth year of production, the Sukari gold mine remains highly cash generative, with 2014 output expected to hover around 420,000 ounces. The company, whose shares are listed on both the Canadian and the London stock exchanges, has benefited from the news that Egypt has drafted legislation to bar third parties from challenging contracts such as Centamin's at its Sukari mine in the country.
