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Fishing for phonelines Lebanon’s telecom sector is set for a tumultuous month as the operating contracts of both mobile network operators Alfa and mtc are set to expire. Last month Prime Minister Najib Mikati confirmed to the press that a decision to renew the management contracts of Alfa, owned by Orascom Telecom, and mtc, owned by the Kuwaiti telecom company Zain, was anything but assured. Speaking at a press conference after meeting with the telecommunications minister, Mikati said that a decision to renew the contracts which were to expire on January 31 had not been taken and that the government was considering three options: renew the contracts with the same companies, adopt contracts with other companies or bring the sector back into the government’s fold. A new tender, however, would take between three and six months, during which time the existing contracts would be renewed, the premier said. Mikati also