NII Holdings CEO Steve Shindler has indicated that the proceeds from the sale of its Mexican unit to AT&T Inc will be used to fund its Brazilian operations. Shindler commented: ‘We believe that the sale of Nextel Mexico represents an opportunity to reduce our operational risk, deliver value to our stakeholders and provide the liquidity that will position us to emerge from Chapter 11 reorganisation with a healthy balance sheet and fund our business plan in Brazil’.
Earlier this week, heavily indebted NII Holdings, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganisation in September, agreed to sell its Nextel Mexico operation to AT&T for USD1.875 billion. Following the closure of the Mexican divestment, NII Holdings will operate just two subsidiaries, Nextel Brasil and Nextel Argentina.
Last month Nextel Brasil revealed that it is set to double its 2015 CAPEX to USD1 billion as it extends its mobile network to around 200 new cities next year, on top of the 497 covered at present. Nextel is also said to be interested in acquiring the vacated 1800MHz frequencies previously held by the now-defunct Unicel in Sao Paulo state.