Happy couple on separate routes
By LEONIE WOOD
Wednesday 28 March 2001
Telstra chief executive Ziggy Switkowski has signalled that the telecommunications carrier may expand in Asia separately from its anchor partner, the Hong Kong-based Pacific Century CyberWorks.
Telstra remained committed to expanding in Asia, but Dr Switkowski emphasised Telstra's ambitions may differ from PCCW's plans.
He also raised the prospect that PCCW may one day sell down its stake in the partners' joint ventures, although he declined to speculate on PCCW's intentions or timing.
"We will continue to work with PCCW on identifying shared opportunities, and that is normal," he said.
"But we have always understood with (PCCW) that their interests and what is strategic to us may be a little bit different as we go forward.
"There is plenty of room in the partnership agreement for us to operate at distance one to the other."
Telstra yesterday appointed Dick Simpson as its most senior eyes and ears in Asia, making him head of the new Hong Kong-based International division.
Mr Simpson has total responsibility for supervising Telstra's $4.5 billion joint-venture interests with PCCW.
David Phodey, the current chief executive of IBM Australia/New Zealand, will replace Mr Simpson as head of Telstra's mobile phones business.
Speaking from Hong Kong, Dr Switkowski highlighted the partners' keen interest in expanding into China. But he again noted that Telstra's strategy in China may differ from PCCW's.
"We are taking our first small steps to better coming to grips with the Chinese market, and seeing what opportunities there might be for PCCW to pursue. Our strategies might be a little different," he said, adding that the partners were working together and sharing information.
Telstra owns 60 per cent of CSL, Hong Kong's biggest mobile-phone company, and 50 per cent of a global carrier network in tandem with PCCW.
"We have built into our agreements various rights that give both partners great comfort if there were to be a changing in the shareholdings," Dr Switkowski said. He did not want to speculate about PCCW's plans for its holdings.
"We are pleased with our investments, we are pleased with the quality of the partnerships and we are looking forward to making them more successful."
Dr Switkowski said the PCCW ventures represented only part of Telstra's ambitions in Asia, though Telstra was in no hurry to snap up new targets.
"We continue to strain a whole lot of candidates against, I must say, ever-tighter (investment) criteria," he said.
"We obviously have the capacity to make investments, we think we are in a buyer's market and there is no urgency, and we are going to be very patient."
This story was found at: theage.com.au |
