Vocus Communications has appointed former Optus boss Kevin Russell as managing director and chief executive, three months after Geoff Horth quit the broadband provider in the wake of an earnings warning.
Seventeen months after Perth investor Anthony Grist left the board of Vocus Communications after failing to secure backing for a leadership shake-up, the three former M2 Group directors who retained control at that time have all resigned from the underperforming telco business.
Vocus chief executive Geoff Horth has left the company by mutual agreement with the board, a week after the telco posted a sharp fall in profit and cut its outlook.
Vocus Communications is aiming to sell its New Zealand business by the end of June as part of the internet provider's strategy of offloading non-core assets to slash debt.
Vocus Communications has reported a net loss of $1.46 billion after making heavy write-downs on goodwill for some of its recent acquisitions and abandoned paying a dividend to redirect funds to projects and debt reduction.
Two competing subsea cables are set to be built between Perth and Singapore after Vocus Communications finalised construction contracts this week, coinciding with a Telstra-led consortium striking an agreement with the same builder.
Vocus Communications shares have plunged more than 20 per cent after Australia's fourth biggest telecommunications group delivered a grim trading update following its rapid expansion.
Vocus Communications boss Geoff Horth has survived a proposal to remove him from the helm of the firm by Perth venture capitalist Anthony Grist and Vocus founder James Spenceley.
Vocus Communications is targeting the consumer market and has its sights on becoming Australia's "most loved telco", after its full-year profit more than trebled in the wake of mergers with M2 Group and Amcom.
Deal hungry Vocus Communications is buying a Nextgen Group subsidiary, plus two WA-focused development projects, for up to $861 million to bolster its telecommunications infrastructure and earnings pipeline.
