The Ecuadorian government announced it will extend America Movil’s current service contract, enabling the operator to continue operations in the country until a new permanent deal is hammered out.
Reuters reported, the Mexico-headquartered telecommunications giant’s Ecuadorian subsidiary Conecel, which trades as Claro, will pay US$3.3 million per month under the extension.
The current deal between the two was signed in 2008 and is scheduled to expire in three days (August 26), the extension will be in effect on August 27.
Minister of Telecommunications Vianna Maino said: "The extension will be valid until the newly renegotiated contract is signed, which is estimated to take approximately six months."
The minister added the new contract will be valid for 15 years and parties are adding final value and new conditions.
Claro Ecuador has 9.2 million subscribers taking 52% of market share in the country. America Movil had previously pledged to invest half a billion dollars into Ecuador to develop services.
