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Viewing cable 06SANAA221, UNITEL GSM BID IN DOUBT; OMANTEL POISED TO BENEFIT

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06SANAA221 2006-02-01 12:53 2011-08-30 01:44 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy Sanaa
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 000221 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/28/2016 
TAGS: PGOV ECON EINV ECPS EIND YM ECON COM
SUBJECT: UNITEL GSM BID IN DOUBT; OMANTEL POISED TO BENEFIT 
 
REF: SANAA 23 
 
Classified By: Charge D'Affaires Nabeel Khoury for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
(d). 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY.  After months of speculation, it is now 
certain that Unitel is unable to cover the cost of its bid 
offer for Yemen's third GSM license.  Political connections 
continue to keep the company afloat, but most bets are now on 
Omantel to win the license.  Although a legitimate operator, 
Omantel may have overreached with its bid offer as well, and 
it remains to be seen if they will be able to pay, or if a 
behind-the-scenes accommodation will be made.  Post's 
advocacy efforts on behalf of Millicom have little chance for 
success, as President Saleh associates that company with 
Israel.  The tender farce surrounding the GSM license now 
borders on the ridiculous, with corrupt officials fighting 
among themselves while the investment climate continues to 
suffer.  END SUMMARY. 
 
------------------------------- 
Unitel Charade Coming to an End 
------------------------------- 
 
2. (C) After months of delay, Unitel's fourth deadline 
extension to pay the USD 149 million it offered for Yemen's 
third GSM license is set to expire on January 31.  Local 
Unitel representatives have reportedly been unable to come up 
the necessary funds to honor their bid, despite early claims 
that they were backed by China Mobile. (Reftel)  Company 
executives undertook a frantic last-minute search for 
alternate partners, including the Palestinian company Paltel. 
 Paltel representatives visited Sanaa twice and, according to 
Tarik al-Haidary, CEO of GSM competitor Sabafon, Prime 
Minister Bajammal held a four-hour meeting to convince them 
to invest.  Paltel declined the offer, said Haidary, saying 
the contract was not worth the money and Yemen's government 
is too corrupt to trust.  Without a true operating partner, 
Unitel's bid is no longer viable. 
 
-------------------- 
Omantel Next in Line 
-------------------- 
 
3. (C) All indications are that the ROYG will offer the 
contract to the next highest bidder, Omantel, which offered 
USD 101 million.  In a previous meeting with Ambassador, 
Bajammal said that in the event a bidder could not honor its 
offer, the ROYG would simply work its way down the list of 
bidders, a position confirmed in a letter from the Cabinet to 
Omantel's local representative, Saleh Ali Muhsen.  Post is 
formally advocating for Millicom, the third highest bidder at 
USD 54 million.  Fathi Fahem, Millicom's local 
representative, insisted that Omantel does not meet the 
requirement of the tender document, as they have no 
international experience and did not submit their bid bond in 
time. 
 
4. (C) Nevertheless, competitors consider Omantel a 
legitimate operator, hungry to expand beyond Oman.  Their bid 
may be somewhat inflated, said Haidary, but it is worth the 
price to gain a reputation as an international company. 
Muhsen, who will receive 10 percent of the company's shares 
in Yemen if successful, confirmed this view, adding that 
Omantel will recoup some of its cost by selling 35 percent of 
shares to Yemeni investors.  Among those who have expressed 
interest, according to Muhsen, are the Hayel Saeed Group and 
Fahim, his competitor from Millicom.  Sources in Muscat are 
slightly more skeptical, citing Omantel's disappointing 
profits and stagnant share prices for 2005.  While there is 
no doubt that Omantel would like to expand beyond its small 
home market, it may not be willing to accept a loss leader of 
USD 100 million.  As such, Omantel may look to pay in 
installments, rather than in the lump sum required by the 
tender agreement.  If this arrangement is not palatable to 
the ROYG, this could re-open the door for Millicom. 
 
---------------------------- 
Saleh: "Millicom is Israeli" 
---------------------------- 
 
5. (C) Hamid al-Ahmar, head of the al-Ahmar group which 
includes Sabafon, said the situation is "very bad" for 
Millicom.  Ahmar claimed that in a private meeting with 
President Saleh, the President said, "Millicom is Israeli, 
and they will never win this contract."  Millicom is based in 
Luxembourg, but sent former Israeli diplomat David Kimche as 
a company representative to Yemen on several occasions to 
advocate for their bid, which is what may have raised the 
Yemenis' antennae.  (Note:  Hamid is also a member of 
Parliament and son of Yemen's pre-eminent sheikh, Abdullah 
al-Ahmar.  END NOTE). 
 
6. (C) Al-Ahmar also claimed to know for certain that Unitel 
was to belong in part to Saleh, whose interests were 
represented in the matter by his nephew, Tarik.  Muhsen 
rejected the notion that Saleh was behind Unitel, implicating 
instead Bajammal and Minister of Telecommunications Moalimi. 
According to Muhsen, the two ministers conspired with the 
Chinese Ambassador to Yemen (since departed) to obtain 
Chinese loans that would cover the USD 149 billion bid price, 
with significant personal benefit for all three.  When the 
Chinese portion fell through, the ministers managed to gain 
repeated extensions to look for alternative funding.  They 
refused to give Omantel the contract, said Muhsen, because he 
had not paid any bribes.  Haidary countered that the 
extensions can only be explained by a presidential stake in 
the company, and that it is not out of the question that the 
Unitel deal will be revived yet again if Saleh twists more 
arms. (NOTE: Muhsen is brother to Mohammed Ali Muhsen, 
Military Commander for Yemen's Easter Quadrant, and a 
relative of the President.  END NOTE). 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
Comment: Corrupt Fiddle While Investment Climate Burns 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
7. (C) The third GSM tender has become a showcase for Yemen's 
unwillingness to conduct a legitimate tender.  Four months 
after winning the contract, Unitel has yet to pay a dime, but 
remains in the running.  Omantel may benefit from the 
collapse of Unitel's house of cards, but it remains to be 
seen if they too will renege on their initial bid offer. 
ROYG officials refuse to accept that the Yemeni market can 
only attract legitimate operators at around USD 50 million, 
and instead choose to run the tender like a bazaar.  The 
personal involvement of high officials, possibly including 
the President or members of his family, compromises the 
tender process further.  While Yemen's ruling elite continues 
to play games, the clear loser is the country's investment 
climate and telecom services. 
Khoury