Three foreign firms out of the eight that were short-listed to acquire a 75% stake in Zambia's state-owned Zamtel have submitted their bids.

The Times of Zambia reports the three companies are Unitel of Angola, LAP Greencom of Libya, and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. from India.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam is one of India's largest operators while Unitel is the biggest mobile operator in Angola. LAP Greencom is a Libya-based telecommunications firm.

According to the newspaper, a fourth bid from Altimo of Russia was sent on time but due to logistical reasons arrived at the Zambia Development Agency's (ZDA) offices five minutes after the submission deadline. ZDA management said it will submit Altimo’s matter to the board for consideration.

The ZDA said it would announce the short-listed companies to go into a second phase where another due diligence would be undertaken early in the new year.