* Follows court ruling Bharti ownership of Nigeria unit was
void
* Econet claim based on its 5 pct stake in the unit
* Bharti says not been advised of any damages suit
(Adds Bharti Airtel response)
By Tim Cocks
LAGOS, Feb 22 (Reuters) – South Africa-based Econet
Wireless is seeking at least $3.1 billion in damages from Bharti
Airtel in a dispute over ownership of Airtel Nigeria,
according to a suit Econet said it had filed on Wednesday.
Bharti acquired the African operations of Kuwaiti company
Zain in 2010, including 65 percent of Zain Nigeria,
renamed Airtel Nigeria, but a Nigerian court ruled on Jan. 30
that its ownership of the unit was “null and void” because
co-founder and 5 percent shareholder Econet had not been
consulted on the transfer.
Econet claims its stake was unfairly cancelled when Zain
took control in 2005, so any decision made since then without
it, including the transfer to Bharti from Zain, is void. The
Nigerian court upheld that claim.
Bharti, the world’s fifth-biggest mobile phone carrier by
subscribers, said on Feb. 8 that its stake in the Nigerian unit
was “completely safe” and it had appealed against the verdict.
A Bharti spokesman said the company had not been informed of
any lawsuit.
Continued…
