SINGAPORE (April 8): Singapore Myanmar Invesco’s (SMI) intended sale of its telecommunication infrastructure subsidiary, TPR Myanmar, to Tiger Infrastructure for US$10.8 million ($14.4 million) has fallen through after the latter failed to fulfil terms of the sale share agreement (SSA) .
This comes following an extension of the long-stop date to March 31 this year, by which SMI says Tiger Infrastructure “failed to confirm that it was ready, willing and able to complete the proposed disposal in accordance with the terms of the SSA” even after the group sent an April 3 notice Tiger Infrastructure.
As such, SMI says it terminated the SSA last Friday and will retain all non-refundable deposits paid by Tiger Infrastructure for the deal.
This marks the second time SMI has failed to dispose of a telecommunications business over the past two years, the first being its telecommunications joint venture with Golden Infrastructure Group (GIG), Myanmar Infrastructure Group (MIG), which SMI and GIG hold a total 99.9% interest in.
In 2017, GIG had threatened to file a criminal complaint against SMI for moving to divest the latter’s entire 97% stake in MIG to Shining Star International Holdings for some $18.1 million.
The MIG sale fell through in the same year after SMI failed to secure tax benefits-related approval from the Myanmar Investment Commission, according to the group.
SMI’s more recent proposal to dispose of its entire stake in TPR was met by litigation suits from MIG claiming that TPR’s sale breaches terms of GIG’s joint venture agreement with SMI.
Shares in SMI closed flat at 15 cents on Monday.
