DBN bankrolls mobile phone company

THE Development of Namibia (DBN) this week announced it had invested N$36,75 million in four projects, of which the country’s second cellphone operator, Powercom, received the largest cut of N$30,5 million.

The remaining N$6,25 million went to Edu-Loan Namibia (N$4,75 million), Enviro-Fill Namibia (N$1 million) and Wendjizuva Pharmacy (N$500 000). Powercom Managing Director said the six-month guarantee facility would enable his company to ship in the equipment needed for setting up the network.In August this year, Cell One Managing Director Mac Allman announced that by Christmas, Cell One SIM cards would ‘be under every Christmas tree’, but yesterday he refused to shed light on when exactly the launch of Cell One would be.Allman only said that there would a ‘limited’ launch during this festive season, as the company wanted to bring about a quality product.”We have done market research and we have realised that people are more concerned about the quality rather than the price.We will not launch until we are absolutely confident that the system is rock solid,” he said to questions from The Namibian, adding that the company had to make sure that its operations were also profitable.Within the following couple of months, Powercom intends to roll out its network at a cost of US$100 million (N$715 million).Powercom’s equipment for building a brand new mobile system will be provided by a number of companies including Nokia but will share existing sites with Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC).PowerCom (Pty) Ltd was awarded the second mobile phone licence in April this year.The company’s majority shareholder with 39 per cent is TMP of Norway, with local power utility NamPower controlling a 37 per cent stake.DBN Chief Executive Officer David Nuuyoma defended the move to grant a loan to Powercom, saying it was the mandate of his bank to fund infrastructure development projects, adding that Powercom was developing infrastructure in the telecommunications industry of Namibia.Edu-Loan Namibia Managing Director, Faan Bergh, said it would commit N$40 000 to its bursary scheme for a two-year period, while Wendjizuva Pharmacy would use its capital for its business expansion.Environ-Fill Namibia would use loan facility to fulfil its contractual obligations with the Windhoek Municipality.Since its inception in 2002, DBN has rolled out around N$200 million in funding various projects aimed at driving Namibia’s economic growth.Powercom Managing Director said the six-month guarantee facility would enable his company to ship in the equipment needed for setting up the network.In August this year, Cell One Managing Director Mac Allman announced that by Christmas, Cell One SIM cards would ‘be under every Christmas tree’, but yesterday he refused to shed light on when exactly the launch of Cell One would be.Allman only said that there would a ‘limited’ launch during this festive season, as the company wanted to bring about a quality product.”We have done market research and we have realised that people are more concerned about the quality rather than the price.We will not launch until we are absolutely confident that the system is rock solid,” he said to questions from The Namibian, adding that the company had to make sure that its operations were also profitable.Within the following couple of months, Powercom intends to roll out its network at a cost of US$100 million (N$715 million).Powercom’s equipment for building a brand new mobile system will be provided by a number of companies including Nokia but will share existing sites with Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC). PowerCom (Pty) Ltd was awarded the second mobile phone licence in April this year.The company’s majority shareholder with 39 per cent is TMP of Norway, with local power utility NamPower controlling a 37 per cent stake.DBN Chief Executive Officer David Nuuyoma defended the move to grant a loan to Powercom, saying it was the mandate of his bank to fund infrastructure development projects, adding that Powercom was developing infrastructure in the telecommunications industry of Namibia.Edu-Loan Namibia Managing Director, Faan Bergh, said it would commit N$40 000 to its bursary scheme for a two-year period, while Wendjizuva Pharmacy would use its capital for its business expansion.Environ-Fill Namibia would use loan facility to fulfil its contractual obligations with the Windhoek Municipality.Since its inception in 2002, DBN has rolled out around N$200 million in funding various projects aimed at driving Namibia’s economic growth.