Nigeria to start new talks on $3.9bn MTN fine

Nigeria will start new talks with South African
mobile phone operator, MTN, “very soon” to
settle a dispute over a $3.9 billion fine but the
final decision rests with President Muhammadu
Buhari, the communications minister said.



Last week, MTN said it had withdrawn a lawsuit
against Nigeria over the fine, which originally
stood at $5.2 billion, and aimed for a settlement.
MTN was fined for failing to disconnect
unregistered SIM users and has paid $250
million toward a settlement.

(now) for government to meet with them and
conclude negotiations,” telecommunications
minister Adebayo Shittu told Reuters, the first
reaction from the ministry.

MTN shares, which had been down 2.8 percent
on Wednesday, trimmed losses after the
comments although they were still down 1.8
percent. Shittu said President Muhammadu
Buhari would make the final decision on any
settlement over the penalty. “It is within his
power and jurisdiction to do that if he feels that
it would be in the interests of Nigeria to so do,”
he said.

The issue could come up when South African
President Jacob Zuma visits Nigeria next week
for talks with Buhari. Nigeria has been trying to
halt the widespread use of unregistered SIM
cards, fearing they are being used for criminal
activity, including by the militant Islamist group
Boko Haram. Last week MTN, which makes 37
percent of its sales in Nigeria, said it would
withdraw its court challenge in an effort to reach
an amicable settlement and make a “good faith
payment”.

A judge in Lagos last month gave both parties
until March 18 to reach a settlement, after MTN
had asked the court to arbitrate over the
dispute, saying the Nigerian telecoms regulator
had no legal grounds to order the fine.
The fine came months after Buhari took office
last May following an election campaign in which
he pledged to impose tougher regulations and
fight the corruption that had stunted
development in Nigeria.

Shittu also said Nigeria was in advanced talks
with an Indian firm to lay fiber optic cables from
Kogi state to the capital Abuja. He declined to
name the firm. He said he would also travel to
China and South Korea within two weeks in a bid
to encourage foreign firms to invest in
broadband service in the country.