BELGRADE (Serbia), July 6 (SeeNews) – State-owned Telekom Srbija expects its enterprise value to reach 4 billion euro ($4.5 billion) in 2023, backed by a strong rise in profit in the coming period, local media reported.
"The effects of our strategy will be seen already this year, and then from 2021 to 2023 there will be a strong growth in profitability," news daily Blic quoted CEO of mobile operator Mtel, a unit of Telekom Srbija, Vladimir Lucic, as saying on Saturday.
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Telekom Srbija aims to reach a large number of Internet users, to generate additional income from multimedia services and produce digital services, to be sold both in Serbia and abroad, Lucic added.
"All this leads to an increase in the value of the company, which I am convinced will amount to more than 4 billion euro in 2023, because EBITDA will exceed 700 million euro, which ensures an excellent future for Telekom Srbija," he noted.
Last month, Pristina mayor Shpend Ahmeti said Telekom Srbija placed a 155 million euro bid for the acquisition of Kosovo-based IPKO Telecommunications LLC from Telekom Slovenije. "The bid should have been blocked. A few years ago the bid by the Albanian Elvin Guri for Telenor Bank was blocked by Serbia’s central bank. Recognition first!" Ahmeti said back in June.
According to Lucic, there are no political reasons for the bid placed by Telekom Srbija and the potential acquisition will contribute to the strategic goals of the telecoms operator.
"We already operate in the area of Kosovo as a fixed and mobile operator and I do not see why anyone would be against our additional investment, because it is primarily good for users and the economy in this area. But we will wait to see how the situation will unfold," Lucic said.
Serbian media reported on Monday that Telekom Srbija was admitted to the second stage of the tender for the acqusition of IPKO.
($ = 0.885670 euro)
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