Exhibit 99
SCANA SUBSIDIARY ANNOUNCES IMPACT OF
POWERTEL MERGER AGREEMENTS
Wilmington, Delaware, August 28, 2000... SCANA Communications Holdings, Inc., a
wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of SCANA Corporation (NYSE: SCG), announced
today an important step in realizing the value of its investment in Powertel,
Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEL), a leading provider of digital wireless Personal
Communications Services (PCS) in the southeastern United States. Under terms of
definitive agreements announced August 27, 2000 by Powertel and VoiceStream
Wireless Corporation (NASDAQ:VSTR), Powertel has agreed to be acquired by either
VoiceStream, a leading provider of telecommunications services in the United
States, or Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE:DT,FSE:DTE), Europe's largest
telecommunications company and the fourth largest carrier worldwide. SCANA
Communications Holdings, Inc. owns approximately 14.6 million fully diluted
common shares, or about a 27% equity interest, in Powertel, representing an
investment of $249 million.
Details of the Transactions:
Terms of the transactions are described in a press release issued by
VoiceStream Wireless and Powertel on August 27, 2000. VoiceStream and Powertel
have scheduled a conference call to review this announcement. The call will be
held Monday, August 28, 2000 at 9:00 a.m. PDT (12:00 noon ET). The call-in
number is 1-888-732-8927 and the reservation number is 16181979. The
international call-in number is 212-896-6005.
Impact on SCANA Corporation:
"This transaction is significant to SCANA because it is an important
step in our efforts to realize the value of our long-standing investment in
Powertel for our shareholders," said William B. Timmerman, chairman, president
and chief executive officer of SCANA Corporation. "The growth of our $249
million investment in Powertel to a market value of more than $1.2 billion
represents an exceptional return for our shareholders."
"Powertel is the second successful telecommunications venture we have
participated in," said Timmerman. "In 1990, we realized a gain of $46 million
from the sale of our investment in Telecom*USA to MCI Communications
Corporation. Our participation in the development of these start-up ventures has
helped us gain valuable knowledge about entering new and highly competitive
markets. That knowledge played a significant role in our successful entry into
the recently deregulated retail natural gas market in Georgia, where our SCANA
Energy subsidiary captured a 30 percent market share in less than a year after
that market opened to competition."
Based on closing market prices of Deutsche Telekom and VoiceStream on
August 25, 2000, respectively, SCANA Communications Holdings, Inc. would have
recorded an after-tax gain of approximately $850 million on the closing of the
Deutsche Telekom/Powertel merger, or an after-tax gain of approximately $650
million on the closing of the VoiceStream/Powertel merger.
"This transaction will result in increased liquidity for SCANA and
allow us to more easily monetize our investment in the future and reinvest the
proceeds to repurchase outstanding common stock, reduce SCANA Corporation's
indebtedness, and support continued growth for our Company," said Timmerman.
SCANA Communications Holdings' current Powertel holdings are subject to
contractual resale restrictions arising out of the transaction and the common
shares SCANA Communications Holdings will receive in either of these
transactions will be subject to resale restrictions, which will be summarized in
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission made by Powertel. These
contractual resale restrictions are in addition to those which generally apply
under securities law.
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SCANA Communications Holdings, Inc., a Delaware-based corporation, is a
wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of SCANA Corporation. SCANA Corporation,
headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, is an energy-based holding company
principally engaged, through subsidiaries, in electric and natural gas utility
operations, telecommunications and other energy-related businesses. Information
about SCANA and its businesses is available on the Company's website at
www.scana.com.
SCANA Conference Call Notice:
William B. Timmerman, chairman, president and chief executive officer
of SCANA Corporation and Kevin B. Marsh, senior vice president and chief
financial officer of SCANA Corporation, will discuss the implications of this
transaction for SCANA Corporation and respond to questions during a conference
call scheduled for August 28, 2000 at 1:30 p.m. ET. The call-in number for the
conference call is 1-800-374-2396. Participants should call in 5 to 10 minutes
prior to the scheduled start time.
A live, listen-only web cast of the conference call will be available
on the Company's web site at www.scana.com or at www.streetevents.com.
Participants should go to either of these web sites at least 10 minutes prior to
the 1:30 p.m. ET start time and follow the instructions. A replay of the
conference call will be available approximately 2 hours after conclusion of the
call through September 8, 2000 on SCANA's web site or by calling 1-800-642-1687
and entering the I.D. number 162120.
# # #
This press release includes forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Those statements include
statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company
and its management. Although SCANA Corporation believes that its expectations
are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its goals
will be achieved. Readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements
are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
indicated by such forward-looking statements. Many of these risks and
uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond the companies' ability to
control or estimate precisely, such as future market conditions, currency
fluctuations, the behavior of other market participants, the actions of
governmental regulators and other risk factors detailed in SCANA Corporation's,
Deutsche Telekom's, VoiceStream's, and Powertel's reports filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company disclaims any obligation to
update any forward-looking statements.
Interested persons are advised to read the filings which have been and
will be made with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Deutsche Telekom,
VoiceStream and Powertel, including the proxy statement/prospectus regarding the
transactions referenced in this press release because such filings do contain
and will contain important information. The proxy statement/prospectus will be
filed with the Commission by Deutsche Telekom, VoiceStream and Powertel.
Security holders and other interested persons may obtain a free copy of the
proxy statement/prospectus (when available) and other related documents filed by
Deutsche Telekom, VoiceStream, and Powertel at the Commission's web site at
www.sec.gov or at the Commission's public reference room located at 450 Fifth
Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20549 or at one of the Commission's other public
reference rooms in New York, New York and Chicago, Illinois. Please call the
Commission at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference
rooms.
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