Vodacom will seek to capitalise on the agreement by its parent companies, Vodafone and Telkom, that it will be able to expand further into Africa and penetrate regions north of the equator.
This is according to Vodacom CEO Alan Knott-Craig, who this morning presented the company's interim results for the six months to end September. He said the cell operator is free to expand into all African countries, except for Egypt and Kenya.
Last week, Vodafone said it and Telecom Egypt had entered into a strategic partnership with the aim of increasing co-operation and jointly developing a range of products and services for the Egyptian market.
Ian Gray, CEO of Vodafone Egypt, said in a press release the company had a "strong strategic partnership between its two major shareholders", and the agreement places "Vodafone Egypt on a firm footing to capture future growth in the Egyptian telecommunications market".
Knott-Craig quipped that most of Africa has already been "eaten" - referring to other cellular companies' expansion into Africa - but said Vodacom would look into opportunities.
R3 billion profit
Vodacom - 50%-owned by Telkom and 50%-owned by Vodafone - reported revenue of R19.5 billion for the six months, a 2.3% year-on-year increase.
Net profit after tax was R3.1 billion, which is 30.4% up on the previous period. The company also claimed it now has 25.8 million customers, or SIM cards.
Knott-Craig said that, as far as he is aware, there had not been any change in the shareholders' agreement. However, it is thought the change in direction might quash rumours that Telkom was looking to disinvest from Vodacom.
Market commentators recently speculated that Telkom might sell out of Vodacom to pursue its African expansion plan, but major players denied recent market speculation that Vodafone was keen to get its hands on the rest of Vodacom.
Telkom has previously said it offered to purchase Vodafone's shareholding in Vodacom, and that the UK-based company refused, stating it wished to remain a key player locally.
There has also been speculation in recent months that the reverse could occur, and Vodafone could buy-out Telkom's stake.
It was reported recently that Telkom would meet with Vodafone to discuss allowing the SA-based cellular company to expand north of the equator.
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