Orascom Telecom 2007 net income up 180 pct Reuters reported that Orascom Telecom posted a 180 percent rise in 2007 net income to $2.021 billion, and said subscriber numbers had exceeded 70 million by the end of the year. The company said on Tuesday that its 2007 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 20 percent to $2.043 billion. EBITDA margin was 43.3 percent versus 43.9 percent in 2006, and revenues rose 22 percent to $4.72 billion compared to 2006. The results were lower than the expectations of brokerages, which had forecast net income at between $2.14 billion and $2.37 billion, and EBITDA between $2.16 billion and $2.38 billion. OT said the net income figure, cited after minority interest, included a non-recurring gain of $761 million from the sale of its investment in Hutchison Telecommunications International, and of $920 million resulting from the sale of Iraqi mobile phone unit, Iraqna. Net income before minority interest was $2.083 billion, a 164 percent rise over the previous year. OT, the fourth largest Arab mobile operator by market value, said it expected to continue delivering over 20 percent revenue growth in 2008, while EBITDA margins were expected to be stable. -Agencies Al Watany Bank 2007 net profit rises 157 pct Al Watany Bank, a subsidiary of National Bank of Kuwait, made a net profit of LE 243.6 million ($44.6 million) in 2007, a 157 percent jump on its 2006 profits, the stock exchange said in a statement on Tuesday. The bank made LE 94.6 million in 2006, according to the statement. National Bank of Kuwait said in November it owned 96.04 percent of Al Watany Bank s shares after buying most of them in October. -Agencies CMA rejects AMOC share-split bid The Capital Market Authority rejected a request by Alexandria Mineral Oils (AMOC) for a five-for-one share split, the authority said on Tuesday. The authority does not approve that the company proceed with measures for splitting the nominal value of the share from LE 10 ($1.83) to LE 2, said a statement by the authority, posted on the CASE website. The statement said the decision was based on the criteria for authorizing a split, and in light of the percentage of the company s shares which trade, the number of investors and the ownership structure. AMOC s board had unanimously approved the share split on Saturday, saying the reduced price would make the shares more liquid, accessible to more investors and improve the stock s performance. The firm has 86.1 million shares at a nominal value of LE 10 each, of which 43.1 million are free floating. -Agencies Egypt to spend $567 mln on fresh water projects, says report Egypt plans to spend $567 million to overhaul the fresh-water infrastructure and build new water projects across the country, Al-Ahram reported, citing Transportation Minister Mohamed Mansour. As many as 2 million Egyptians do not have drinking water at home and 7 million others have running water just three hours a day, the state-run newspaper said. Suez Canal revenues up to $407.7 mln for February Revenues from the Suez Canal rose to $407.7 million in February 2008 from $326.4 million in the same month last year, the government said on Wednesday on its Information Portal website. The canal is an important source of foreign currency for Egypt, along with tourism, oil and gas exports and remittances from Egyptians living abroad. The number of vessels passing through the waterway fell to 1,676 in February from 1,690 in January, but rose from 1,511 in February 2007, the report said. -Agencies Citadel Capital of Egypt Picks Morgan, Citi for IPO Bloomberg reported that Citadel picked Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc. to organize its $350 million initial public offering, two people with knowledge of the sale said. The Cairo-based company will sell the shares in the next six months, said the sources, who declined to be identified because the managers and size of the sale have not been made public yet. HC Securities & Investment, Beltone Financial, CI Capital, and Pharos Holding for Financial Investment may help sell the shares, the revenue of which will be used to finance new ventures including energy projects, they said. Demand for initial public offerings in the Egyptian stock market is growing as the CASE 30 Index reaches record highs. "There will be huge demand for this initial public offering, said Mohamed Ashmawy, a trader at Commercial International Brokerage Co. in Cairo. "They are the biggest private-equity company in Egypt and they have the best management. I would buy its shares blindly. Founded in 2004 by Ahmed Heikal and Hisham El-Khazindar, Citadel Capital s shareholders include Abu Dhabi-based Emirates International Investment Co., according to its Web site. The company said Feb. 26 that it was in talks with four international banks to help it sell shares to raise funds for new energy, food and manufacturing ventures. -Bloomberg
