The chief executive officer of Romanian telecom operator Romtelecom, Yorgos Ioannidis (in picture), will cease his mandate at the helm of the company starting July 1, people close to the matter told Mediafax Tuesday.

"An internal memo was sent to company employees Monday," the people said. Contacted by Mediafax, company representatives did not wish to comment. Ioannidis started his mandate within Romtelecom in the first half of 2007.

The company is owned by Greek group OTE and it is the largest local operator of fixed telephony. Romtelecom and Cosmote have recently opened a joint store, the first step in a said merger which has yet to be publicly announced.

Romanian communication minister Valerian Vreme said the appointment of Romtelecom’s next CEO needs to observe the company’s privatization agreement.
"There will be a meeting of Romtelecom’s managing board and shareholders. Personally, I have a good opinion about Stefanos Theocharopoulos, the current CEO of Cosmote Romania,” Vreme said answering a question on Theocharopoulos’ potential appointment as Romtelecom CEO. Theocharopoulos joined Cosmote Romania in 2008.
OTE recently decided not to buy out the remaining 46 percent stake in Romanian hard line telephony operator Romtelecom, deeming the moment “inopportune”, due to unfavorable economic conditions in Greece.

Romania wants to sell off its holding in Romtelecom and it had asked OTE to present a buyout offer by end-May. OTE, Greece’s biggest telecom company, owns 54.01 percent in Romtelecom, while the remainder shares are in the ministry’s hands.

Mid-February, the IT&C ministry said it had initiated talks with several investment banks on the possible listing of Romtelecom’s shares. The ministry values its stake in Romtelecom at EUR 1 billion.

Romtelecom is Romania’s largest fixed line telecom operator. The phone company reported revenue of EUR 166.3 million in the first quarter, down 10.9 percent on the year. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) fell by 62.6 percent to EUR 22.2 million.

Mediafax, Romania-Insider.com