Bureau for Public Enterprise (BPE) and Transcorp are expected to shed some of their shares in NITEL to pave way for a technical partner with the financial muscle and know-how to turn the fortunes of the ailing telecommunications company around.

Officials of the BPE, Transcorp, NITEL, and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) are soon to end talks, which began late last year, on ways to solve the problems of NITEL, which appear to be daunting for Transcorp that bought 50 per cent stake in the company in 2006.

The idea is that both BPE, which holds 49 per cent in trust for government and Transcorp, which paid $500 million for 51 per cent stake over a year ago, will give up some shares to be sold to the technical partner. A United Arab Emirates firm, Etisalat, which earlier indicated interest to partner with Transcorp pulled out when the latter unwilling to give out a substantial portion of its shares to the Middle East Company.

Now, Transcorp is said to be willing to let go a good chunk of its shares in NITEL because it has found out that going it alone has become difficult. Sources of fund it relied on in the early days when it bought the company have not been forthcoming.

It will be recalled that late 2006, chairperson of Transcorp, Dr. Ndidi Onyuike-Okereke, announced that the company had access to I billion Euros from the European Union to fund NITEL. BPE officials said the federal government has been ever willing to give out a good percentage of its stakes in NITEL if it will help bail out the company. Its efforts to raise funds from the public through its Initial Public Offer (IPO) have not succeeded as planned.

Transcorp vice president, corporate communications, Adedayo Ojo, said that the company will unveil a new plan that will turn NITEL around early this year. The plan, he said include the announcement of a technical partner.