Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Algerie Telecom Says There's No Need for Privatisation


Algerie Telecom CEO Moussa Benhamadi has announced in a national radio interview that the group had sufficient resources for its development and that it was no longer justified to open up its share capital.

In October last year the executive had said it was the government's decision to make, but that the group may be competitive regionally and internationally in two or three years. Algeria's government has been planning to partially privatise Algerie Telecom for four years. Benhamadi revealed yesterday that the operator would invest EUR 100 million by 2013 to expand the fibre-optic network and to make it accessible to most Algerians, notably in urban areas.

Algerie Telecom aims to have 6 million fixed network subscribers in 2013 and to increase the penetration rate of IPTV. It stood at 10.6 percent in 2008, compared to 5.02 percent in 2000. The operator generated a DZD 60 billion turnover in 2008, and invested DZD 80 billion between 2003-2008, a quarter of which went into upgrading the fixed network, said Benhamadi. He added that the group aimed to provide free local calls from 2013. 

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