Etisalat Afghanistan to invest $100m in next two years

Monday, Mar 14, 2011

Gulf News

Expects to double subscriber base for a surge in market shares

Abu Dhabi: Etisalat, the UAEs largest telecom operator, plans to invest $100 million (Dh367 million) in Afghanistan in 2011 and 2012, Saeed Al Hameli, Chief Executive Officer of etisalat Afghanistan, said.

We will invest $100 million in 2011, 2012, Al Hameli told reporters at a press conference in Abu Dhabi yesterday.

He added that the company expects to double its subscriber base from three million to six million users in the next two years which would push its market share to 30-35 per cent.

Etisalat Afghanistan has invested $300 million in the war-torn country since it kicked off its operations in 2007. It currently has a market share of 24 per cent, Al Hameli said.

Reach

The company currently competes with three tele-com operators in Afghanistan: Roshan, MTN Group Ltd and Wireless Telecommunications Co. Al Hameli said that the telecom operators have only penetrated 50 per cent of Afghanistans telecom market.

Etisalat Afghanistans cumulative revenue is expected to reach $800 million in five years since the start of their operations, Al Hameli said.

To differentiate itself from other players in the Afghan market, etisalat plans to launch 3G services as soon as the Afghan government decides to issue the bidding, which is expected to happen very soon. We are well positioned and we have the budget, Al Hameli said.

Etisalat is ready and we are waiting. Once the bidding cycle starts we will be the first to bid on it, he added.

By Samia Badih, Staff Reporter