Amalgamated Telecom Holdings (ATH), Fiji’s principal telecommunications holding company, has announced its intention to offer new shares to raise FJD120 million (USD55 million) for projects in Papua New Guinea. The announcement came from ATH chief executive Ivan Fong at the company’s Annual General Meeting this week, confirming that a resolution had passed to offer additional shares to existing shareholders only – likely to be equivalent to no more than 15% of their existing stake in the company.
‘ATH sees the growth opportunities in the Pacific, we’d like to continue that. The company does require additional capital, so one of the things we do want to avoid is reaching a situation where we’re taking on so much debt that it becomes too risky for the company,’ Fong was cited by local press as saying. It is understood that ATH’s single largest shareholder – the Fiji National Provident Fund (72.6%) – has already expressed interest in buying new shares, although the CEO confirmed that the offer will be open to ‘all eligible shareholders’. The board of ATH will now prepare the necessary paperwork to issue the new shares, he added.