Here is a mad thought

crawler

NAMA take over state telco assets, including eircom.

Debate....

IrelandOffline_

crawler wrote: »

NAMA take over state telco assets, including eircom.

Debate....

Why would/should NAMA take them over?

First of all they'd have to buy them and then inherit that vast debt.
Secondly, it might be cheaper to build a new network from scratch.
This network would/should be open access like the touted Australian plans.

They aren't up for sale, as far as I know, although we will see after the upcoming BCM shareholders meeting.

The debt matures in 2012/2013 so then we will see the fireworks.

Are you advocating that the state nationalise eircom? A PPP type arrangement? Where would the private funding to come from?

There is a lot of merit in the idea, however I can see the government having apoplexy at the thought of acquiring eircom.
It would be an ideological nightmare from an EU perspective, could the EU admit that it's strongly held views and policies were a failure? Anyway the EU have only 1 billion for broadband and I can't see them pumping all of that available cash into Ireland Inc.

Imaginative solutions have to be undertaken and quickly too if we are to avert the looming crisis. I honestly think that the government do not rate "telephones" as a high priority, banks are failing, social welfare and gov spending spiralling out of control and all the other economic woes.

So,in conclusion, I think that it's down to the industry to work together and try to solve/avert this "looming crisis". Quite frankly the telecommunications industry is on it's own in the near future.

crawler

I never said it was good or bad idea - just wanted to see how the debate plays out

Sponge Bob

So the bond holders must sell out to an Irish bank first at full face value ( €4bn) and then the NAMA punts in an offer for what it is actually worth and takes it public , Cripes :eek:

trekkypj

What if the State bought the company's debt in exchange for the physical network and the engineering staff? That would be a good deal I think. Clear their books so they can be more competitive. The state would be able to refinance the debt easier I'd imagine.

Functional separation of network and provider could then take place as eircom would no longer control the last mile. And if eircom then went belly-up despite that, the network would be kept running with minimum disruption to the customers.

watty

not worth it.

4.7 Billion. or 5.1 if you include pension deficit.

You could do a new FTTC for all for that.

trekkypj

watty wrote: »

not worth it.
4.7 Billion. or 5.1 if you include pension deficit.

You could do a new FTTC for all for that.

According to the Indo, you could do FTTH :P The problem is - who'd provide the funding? I doubt any of the telcos would commit to that much spending

It has to be done though, somehow. Otherwise we're all gonna be in the stone age for the forseeable future.

And if Eamon Ryan starts going on about 3 'broadband' as an alternative for rural areas again I'm going to get very tetchy indeed. I'm using it in Maynooth and it's rubbish. If it's dodgy in the urban areas, how the hell will it cope with hills and valleys in the rural areas?

I had a weird nightmare about a month ago - I was walking near our (very rural) village and there were some workmen laying down ducting and taking down all the telephone poles. They went all the way up to our next door neighbour who's about 1/2 km down the road, and stopped there, leaving the next house (ours) still connected to the poles.

It must be bad if I'm dreaming of broadband. :P