JEDDAH – Saudi Telecom Company (STC) agreed to buy Public Telecommunication Company Limited (Bravo) from its two shareholders in addition to receiving SR 244 million ($ 65.37 million) in old dues, STC said in a bourse statement.



Bravo operates a Push to Talk mobile service in Saudi Arabia since 2005 when it entered into a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) agreement with STC for 15 years to provide wireless communication services using iDEN technology operating on the SMR800 frequency band. As a result of the venture proving to be unprofitable and requiring substantial investments, STC agreed to take full ownership of Bravo from its two shareholders Wataniya International FZ LLC and Al Wataniya Gulf Telecommunications Company Holding Company.



The takeover is part of a final settlement of Bravo’s obligations towards STC, which involves the two shareholders paying an additional SR244 million to settle STC claims and to transfer all of Bravo assets to STC.



The acquisition would enable STC to extract synergies by bundled offerings and with Bravo’s unique Push to Talk technology to significantly improve the quality of service to both government agencies and private businesses. — SG