Airtel, Telkom Now Want CAK Merger Conditions Reviewed

Airtel and Telkom Kenya now want merger conditions set by the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) reviewed and done away with.

In a suit at the Competition Tribunal, the telcos want the conditions that barred them from making any new sales agreements over the next five years.

In the merger conditions issued in December 2019, CAK required that Telkom Kenya to reverses its frequency to the government upon expiry of the lease period. CAK also barred the companies from selling or buying frequency licences.

“Upon expiry of the term of the merged entities’ operating license, the spectrum in the 900MHZ and 1800MHZ acquired from Telkom shall revert back to the Government of Kenya (GoK),” said CAK in a statement id December.

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The two telcos want to be allowed to retain all their current staff for a period of 12 months, rather than two years required by CAK.

They also want to be allowed to release their annual reports two years from the merger date.

The merger company, which will be called Airtel-Telkom, is also required to honour all existing government contracts.