April 2, 2004 West Palm Beach, FL -- Innovative Communication Corp. LLC (ICC) took management control today of Belize Telecommunications Ltd. (BTL) from Lord Michael Ashcroft and Carlisle Holdings Ltd. ICC's purchase price of 100 percent of BTL's stock is more than $105 million, making it the largest business transaction in the country's history -- and now the largest privately owned telephone company in the United States, the company claims.
Last week Innovative concluded an agreement with the Government of Belize transferring ownership of BTL to ICC. "We are very optimistic about the future of Belize," observed Jeffrey J. Prosser, ICC's chairman and CEO. "Belize Telecommunications will be a significant contributor to the economic development of Belize and between the two are poised to have an industrious future together."
Prosser made clear that ICC is committed to investing further in the country's infrastructure with fiber, broadband services, and the latest telecommunications technology for residential and business customers. "We will work closely with Prime Minister Said Musa," explained Prosser, "and the Belizean government to assess new growth areas and prioritize where infrastructure is needed."
At the moment, BTL has nearly 50,000 access land lines and serves 52,000 cellular subscribers and more than 10,000 Internet customers. In addition, the company has 491 employees in 17 branch offices throughout the Central American-Caribbean basin.
Addressing the matter of employees, Prosser explained that, "the current Carlisle management is no longer in place. We will assess the Belizeans in the company and build a management team of Belizean nationals."