Operators

Romanian operator group Digi Communications secured a three-year loan amounting €150 million to repay a €450 million bond due in 2025.

Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison President Director and CEO Vikram Sinha opened up on his strategy to transition the operator into a native AI technology company for lofty growth targets, and contribute to Indonesia’s ambition to become a developed nation over the next two decades.

Sri Lankan telco Dialog Axiata said on Thursday it has officially take 100% control of rival telco Bharti Airtel Lanka via a share swap, sealing a deal that has been in the works for over a year.

Telecom Namibia has announced what it calls a three-year transformative partnership via a joint venture between mobile technology company ZTE Corporation and its partner company Huafull International Limited.

Colombian operator Claro deployed the first stage of its 5G network offering fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband with vendor partner Nokia, in only four months since securing its 5G licence.

Globe Telecom announced more mobile site transfers to PhilTower for a capital injection to pay down debts.

Orange reportedly deemed its 40% stake in Mauritius Telecom as not core to its business and is weighing up options to sell its shares.

Indian telco Vodafone Idea has reportedly completed the minimum rollout requirements outlined in its spectrum licences for its 5G network, although the timeline for a proper service launch remains fuzzy.

Vodacom announced it will increase investment into the Free State and Northern Cape provinces in South Africa, a move to boost capacity and resilience particularly in rural areas.

Amsterdam-headquartered operator group Veon completed upgrades to its unit Beeline Kazakhstan’s network using ZTE equipment, to support growing demand of connectivity in the country.

Malaysian 5G wholesale operator Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) said on Thursday that four of five telco investors have met the deadline to complete their Share Subscription Agreements (SSAs), paving the way for the launch of a second 5G operator.

Orange opened its IoT digital platform to energy suppliers in Africa and the Middle East that tracks payment, solar kits and smart meters in rural locations, in a bid to boost uptake of its services and electricity in emerging markets.

State-owned telco Kazakhtelecom JSC has reportedly signed separate deals this week – one to finalise the selloff of its mobile unit MTS, and the other to build a subsea cable connecting Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan.

Vodafone confirmed media reports regarding its sale of shares in infrastructure company Indus Towers to pay down debts accrued in India.

Indian operator Bharti Airtel has reportedly prepaid its deferred spectrum liabilities to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). These high-interest liabilities related to spectrum acquired in the auctions of the year 2012 and 2015.

Globe Telecom built 116 new cell sites and upgraded 812 mobile sites to LTE in Q1 this year.

Southeastern Europe-focused telecoms player United Group reportedly lined up potential buyers for its operations, with aims to gain €8 billion (US$8.57 billion) from potential sales, reported Bloomberg.

Senegal’s three mobile operators have reportedly agreed to lower telecoms service costs – potentially as soon as later this week – in response to the government’s call to deal with longstanding complaints from consumers on the issue.

Vodafone Group is reportedly seeking to unload part or all of its 21.5% stake in Indian telecoms tower operator Indus Towers this week to raise cash to help repay its debts.

Sri Lankan telco Dialog Axiata says it has launched a smart tracking solution for vehicle and fleet monitoring, which also uses its 4G network to power various data-based monitoring features.

Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom chose Nokia equipment to modernise its network infrastructure with Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) capabilities in several key locations nationwide.

Ethiopia halted the sale of shares of its state-owned operator Ethio Telecom to foreign companies, to prioritise domestic retail investors instead, reported Bloomberg.

Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia announced on Monday that it has launched commercial operations in the war-torn Tigray region, and is in the process of building a 4G network that will be upgradeable to 5G.

Cambodian telco CamGSM – which operates under the brand Cellcard – announced on Tuesday that it has earmarked US$180 million for network expansion for 2024, with a particular focus on extending coverage to underserved communities.

Axiata’s banking unit Boost Bank launched its mobile app after gaining approval only five months ago from regulators to launch digital services.  

Global digital operator Veon announced on Monday it is will invest an additional US$1 billion between 2023 and 2027 to help its Ukrainian subsidiary Kyivstar rebuild the country’s digital infrastructure as the Russian invasion continues.

Indonesian operator Telkomsel says it has completed the first validation of Wi-Fi 7 in Indonesia together with the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) as it makes plans to adopt the technology for its fixed broadband services.

Maxis CEO Goh Seow Eng said on Friday that the telco is ready to sign off on its share subscription agreement (SSA) to take a stake in 5G wholesaler Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) and aims to play a major role in deploying Malaysia’s second 5G network.

­­Orange completed the merger of Orange Romania S.A (ORO) and fixed provider Orange Romania Communications S.A (OROC), a move to create a fixed-mobile convergent player and remain competitive.

Nokia has moved closer to exiting Russia, with the country’s President Vladimir Putin authorising state-backed Rostelecom to acquire the Finnish vendor’s stake in a Russian joint venture.

Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom established an AI unit and appointed a Chief AI Officer in a move to enhance its operations by tapping into the technology.