January 11 (SeeNews) - The government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina said on Wednesday it has no plans to privatise telco BH Telecom, denying media reports that the sale is sought by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
"The sale of BH Telecom has never been a condition of the IMF," the government said in a statement.
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In November, however, the government said that the IMF expects Bosnia's Federation to radically restructure its two telecommunications operators.
The restructuring process is to be preceded by a due diligence study of both companies, the Federation government said at the time, following a meeting between the entity's prime minister, Fadil Novalic, and IMF mission chief in Bosnia, Nadeem Ilahi.
In late December, local media reported that the Federation is preparing to sell part of its stake in BH Telecom and HT Mostar. News daily Dnevni List reported at the time that the Federation will complete due diligence process in the two telcos by end-March before launching the sale by June. Depending on the results of the due diligence, the Federation will choose among four options - a partial sale of its stake, a sale of up to 41% in both telecoms, their full privatisation, or retention of the state-owned stakes in the companies, Dnevni List said.
The Federation government controls a 90% stake in BH Telecom and 50.1% of HT Mostar.
The government, however, denied claims it is drafting a report on the operations of BH Telecom with a view of selling it.
According to local media, the sale of BH Telecom is envisaged in Bosnia's reform agenda for 2015-2018 - a document prepared with the EU's help and backed by the IMF, which has said it will support the implementation of economic policies included in the agenda through new financial arrangements and technical assistance.
The Federation is one of two entities that form Bosnia and Herzegovina. The other is the Serb Republic.