Etisalat Nigeria is in discussions with banks to renegotiate terms of a USD1.2bn loan it had taken four years ago, according to the company’s Vice President for regulatory affairs, Ibrahim Dikko. The negotiations come after Etisalat Nigeria missed a payment on the loan due to the challenging macro-economic environment there, which has resulted in USD shortages in the country’s interbank market, Dikko added. The loan in question was a medium-term note signed with 13 banks in 2013, partially used to refinance a USD650mn loan and the balance was used to modernise the unit’s network. The company is currently considering converting the USD-denominated loan into NGN. Banks also asked Etisalat Group [ETEL.AD] to inject fresh equity into Etisalat Nigeria, according to unnamed banking sources.

Etisalat (AD): AED17.85 as of 8 Mar. 2017, Rating: Neutral, TP: AED18.63/share, MCap: USD42,299mn, ETISALAT UH/ETEL.AD