Egypt Business Network
Posts 1-2 of 2
-
Dr. Nilgün Birgören Premium Member Group moderatorThe company name is only visible to registered members.Etisalat Egypt secures $1.3b loan
Etisalat's Egyptian unit is to borrow 7.2 billion Egyptian pounds (Dh841 million) for expansion and to improve services.
The funds would come from National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr and National Bank of Abu Dhabi. The long-term loan would include a $300 million portion denominated in dollars.
The unit said in November it would spend $1.5 billion on its network over the next three years and would consider listing in Egypt, but did not say when.
It said at the time it had spent eight billion pounds since entering the market in 2007, when it became the most populous Arab country's third mobile operator.
Etisalat still trails market leaders Mobinil and Vodafone Egypt.
It is one of a number of Gulf Arab telecom operators that have expanded overseas after losing home monopolies.
- 11 May 2010, 7:14 pm
-
Dr. Nilgün Birgören Premium Member Group moderatorThe company name is only visible to registered members.Re: Etisalat charts Egypt growth
Etisalat Saturday said it would spend as much as eight billion Egyptian pounds (Dh5.17 billion) over the next three years on its Egyptian unit, whose subscriber base reached 14 million after three years of operation.
"We have achieved during the first two years what was planned to be achieved in five years, and by the end of the third year the number of our subscribers exceeded 14 million," Mohammad Omran, etisalat's chairman, said in a statement.
The operator, which launched its etisalat Misr unit in May 2007, had invested 8 billion Egyptian pounds so far in building its Egyptian network and was preparing to spend the same amount in the next three years on expanding it.
Etisalat expects investments of 8 billion Egyptian pounds more in the coming three years as network expansion is a priority for the company.
Etisalat Misr is competing with Egyptian Company for Mobile Services, (Mobinil), and Vodafone Egypt in the North African country's lucrative mobile phone market.
The number of mobile telephone subscribers in Egypt stood at 58.7 million by the end of April, 35 per cent higher than at the same date a year ago, data on Egypt's Information Portal website showed earlier this month.
Etisalat Misr has the widest and strongest broadband coverage (3.5G) in more than 80 per cent of the county in addition to providing fast HSPA+ applications, the company said.
Etisalat was the only operator in Egypt to be awarded its own international gateway licence. The company now provides special services and rates through its special gateway, it said. Etisalat Misr also acquired EgyNet and Nile Online to provide fixed internet services.
"Etisalat's strategy is to develop a significant international footprint and to benefit from economies of scale. This will serve for the future and provide satisfying returns for our investors, of whom the UAE Government is the largest," Omran said. "We have achieved what we were planning for so far and now we operate in 18 markets serving 107 million customers covering around two billion customers," he added.
- 13 Jun 2010, 4:20 pm
