Acquisition of Link Africa, the Satellite Service Provider, will Create the Most Extensive Pan-Africa Voice and Data Services Network

Gateway Communications, the leading pan-African communications company, today announced that it has agreed to acquire Link Africa, the satellite service provider and subsidiary of Celtel International, for over US$ 50 million in cash. The sale is subject to approval by the South African Reserve Bank.

Celtel, a leading pan-African mobile communications group with over five million customers in 13 countries, acquired Link Africa in 2002 to deliver international voice and data services for the Celtel operating companies. From its international hub in Belgium, Link Africa has grown into one of Africa's largest international service providers, delivering services in more than 15 African countries and switching approximately 7.5% of the international telephone traffic for Sub-Saharan Africa. Link Africa is a substantially profitable company and achieved revenues of $68 million in 2004.

The acquisition will create the largest African-focused service provider delivering the broadest range of connectivity services in over 25 African markets and to over 70 telephone companies and 600 multinational corporations. The acquisition will uniquely position Gateway to benefit from the explosion of international and regional voice and data traffic within the Africa continent, the fastest growing communications market in the world.

Gateway expects to derive significant synergies from the acquisition of Link Africa through the integration of customers, services and network infrastructure and systems. Gateway intends to combine its applications expertise with Link Africa's exceptional infrastructure and engineering capabilities. Gateway will maintain the outstanding management and support staff at Link Africa creating a combined team with unparalleled expertise and experience in the African market.

Post-acquisition, Gateway will maintain a strategic partnership with Celtel and continue to deliver services across the Celtel group. The relationship with Celtel formed a key aspect of the acquisition and was in-line with Gateway's strategy of delivering value added services to the mobile industry. Gateway intends to work with Celtel to deliver a host of additional applications and to leverage Link Africa's expertise to deliver services to other mobile operators across Africa.

Peter Gbedemah, Gateway Communications' Managing Director, commented: "This acquisition has the potential to make a real difference to the quality and affordability of international communications in Africa. Gateway is committed to improving connectivity in the African continent and supporting the roll out of wireless services in historically underserved markets. Most importantly it will allow us to build a strategic relationship with Celtel, one of the fasting growing mobile operators in the world."

Marten Pieters, Celtel International's Chief Executive Officer, said: "Celtel is very pleased to have come to an agreement with Gateway regarding the sale of Link Africa. As Celtel continues to build out its footprint for mobile telecommunications services in Africa, this divestment allows us to focus on our core business. Under the new ownership the quality and continuity of traffic into and out of Africa will be safeguarded."

The sale of Link Africa is part of Celtel's strategy to divest non-core businesses and will enable the management to focus on its core business of mobile telephony in Africa.