Vimpelcom subsidiary to open 900 base stations in Uzbekistan by end of 2013
TASHKENT. Dec 24 (Interfax) - Uzbek mobile operator LLC Unitel, a subsidiary of Russia's OJSC Vimpelcom , will open 900 base stations by the end of 2013, which will allow the company to significantly expand its network capacity and improve its service, the head of Unitel's office of public affairs, Oraz Abdurazakov, told Interfax.
"Thanks to a constructive dialogue with the regulator, we received documentation in November permitting us to launch 900 new base stations in Uzbekistan. This is a growth of 20% in numbering capacity," he said.
Abdurazakov said that more than half of the new stations are already operating, and several of them had been built in 2012.
Vimpelcom's Uzbek subsidiary has been experiencing significant difficulties in expanding its network, including bringing base stations into operation and increasing numbering capacity. As of November, not a single unit had been put into operation of the 500 new base stations and 600 antennae built in 2013.
According to data from Unitel, in January-September 2013, $159 million was invested in the development of the network in Uzbekistan. The company had 10.328 million subscribers, up 29%.
Vimpelcom finished the acquisition of Unitel, the second biggest cellular operator in Uzbekistan, in 2006 from an international consortium headed by Greek company Germanos S.A. The Russian company also acquired Uzbek GSM-provider Buztel. Buztel was merged with Unitel this year. The company launched a commercial 3G network in December 2008.
In March 2009, Unitel and the fixed line operator Buzton, a Golden Telecom subsidiary, began offering commercial services under the joint brand Beeline.