Mobily reviewing offers for Saudi tower portfolio, says CEO

Etihad Etisalat Co. (Mobily) is assessing purchase offers for its wireless towers in Saudi Arabia as the teleco seeks to become profitable this year, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing chief executive officer Ahmad Farroukh.

"We received certain indicative offers. If the deal is good for our shareholders, for sure I’ll bring it on the table," Farroukh said in an interview in Riyadh on Thursday.

Many telecos are opting to sell towers as network quality becomes uniform. Digital Bridge Holdings was said to be among the top bidders for the Mobily’s roughly 10,000 towers in a deal that could reach $2 billion.  

The sale is part of Mobily’s plan to become profitable after losing billions in market value after accounting irregularities were discovered over a year ago.

However, all telecom firms are facing an unexpected challenge because of a new requirement to fingerprint customers for SIM cards, Farroukh said, adding that the company is working around the clock to adapt to the new regulations.