The planned merger of state-owned telco Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Bogota (ETB) with energy and water management companies Empreses de Energia de Bogota (EEB) and Empresas de Acueducto de Bogota (EAAB) – both also state-owned – has been postponed, according to Colombia Reports. ETB’s newly appointed president, Saul Kattan Cohen commented: ‘There will be no merger…at first. There are some legal issues like the judicial nature of the companies which prevent this from happening’. Cohen added that proposals to create a holding company had been put forward, but not yet finalised.
As previously reported by CommsUpdate, Bogota’s new mayor Gustavo Petro has been accused of causing a 17% drop in EEB share prices over a three-day period, following the initial announcement detailing the merger plans, which were part of Petro’s election manifesto.