Telecommunications operator iBurst is in play and a deal could be announced within the next few weeks, according to several well-placed industry sources.

TechCentral has not been able to establish which company is courting iBurst, which is owned by Wireless Business Solutions Holdings (WBS), nor the exact nature of the looming transaction, but it’s understood the talks are at an advanced stage.

iBurst operates a national broadband network based on a proprietary wireless technology and is in the process of building a new network using long-term evolution, or LTE, the next generation of the cellular broadband technology used by the country’s mobile operators.

The company owns highly prized radio frequency spectrum in the 1,8GHz and 2,6GHz bands, both of which are well suited to building wireless broadband networks, especially in metropolitan areas.

Under draft plans published by the Independent Communications Authority of SA to license additional spectrum in both the 800MHz and 2,6GHz bands to telecoms operators, WBS will be granted a further 15MHz of frequency in the higher of the two bands. It already has a 15MHz allocation in the band.

WBS’s shareholders include CEO Thami Mtshali (the largest), Investec, the Development Bank of Southern Africa and a consortium led by Blue Label Telecoms co-CEO Brett Levy.

iBurst commercial executive Malcolm Turnbull says that if the right offer were made and it made sense, the company would not be averse to a sale. “We continually have guys looking at us,” he says, referring TechCentral to Mtshali for comment on current discussions.

Mtshali could not be reached on his mobile phone on Thursday. WBS director David Hilewitz, who represents a number of the company’s shareholders, says only that he “can’t comment at this time”.

As recently as late last year, MTN, which is eager for access to new spectrum so it can build a national LTE network, was rumoured to be considering buying WBS/iBurst. But MTN SA MD Karel Pienaar scotched the rumours, saying the operator had held exploratory discussions with iBurst but an acquisition was “highly unlikely”.

MTN rival Vodacom had a 24% stake in WBS until 2010, but disposed of the stake to other shareholders for an undisclosed sum. — Duncan McLeod, TechCentral