Sunbeach shareholders approve EOCG financing

Shareholders of Barbadian startup mobile operator Sunbeach Communications have approved an agreement to bring on E Oliver Capital Group (EOCG) as a shareholder and financing partner, according to a company statement. The deal will net the company 23.4mn Barbados dollars (US$11.8mn) for network build-out. The funds from EOCG, a US investment group, are the first portion of a 52mn-Barbados dollar debt ceiling authorized by shareholders, Sunbeach corporate communications VP Ian Worrell told BNamericas. Sunbeach may take out further debt if there is an opportunity to expand to another territory once Barbados is up and running, he added. Sunbeach has already pre-subscribed 10,000 of its existing ISP clients as mobile clients, giving them preference for a promotional offer of a fully subsidized handset. The company expects to invest US$25mn to launch the mobile operation, also drawing on capital raised from its August 2002 IPO. Site acquisition for base stations is now complete and all necessary tower colocation agreements are in place, so build-out should be complete by mid-December, but the interconnection agreement with incumbent Cable and Wireless remains mired in legal wrangling. Canadian equipment supplier Nortel Networks (NYSE: NT) is rolling out Sunbeach's GSM/GPRS network. The company has other supply agreements with Nokia (NYSE: NOK), Sony Ericsson and Motorola (NYSE: MOT).