Teletalk to take up another big upgrade project

Teletalk is going to place a new project worth Tk 3,282.20 crore for approval to expand its 3G data services and spread 2G services at the union level.

The operator's board of directors has already approved the project, which will be the biggest project it has undertaken so far. It will now be placed before the government's Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) for approval; the company will provide Tk 336.86 crore while the rest Tk 2,945.34 crore will come from the government.

Teletalk plans to establish 1,500 new 3G sites and 1,700 2G sites with these funds, according to the project documents. The company has 3,750 towers, 1,562 of which are for 3G services.

Teletalk's Managing Director Gias Uddin Ahmed said if they get a green signal from the highest authority, they will open tenders for the project.

“We have covered the cities, towns and growth centres with 3G services, and now, we need to take it to the remotest levels.”

The company plans to start the project in January next year and end it by June 2019.

The project is being implemented as per the government's ten-year economic census, reads the document.

The company began operations in 2005 and offered 3G services in October 2012, one year earlier than the private operators. At present, Teletalk has a limited presence in the rural areas. Earlier in June, Ecnec also approved a similar kind of project worth Tk 676 crore to expand the operator's 3G network at all upazilas, growth centres and educational institutions, and 2.5G network in villages.

Under this project, Teletalk will build around 1,200 3G sites and 500 base transceiver stations mainly for voice services. This project will be completed by 2017, according to documents.

If Teletalk can establish these sites in time, it will help the company get one crore new customers within the next one year, said Ahmed. As of July, the operator's active customers stood at 44.37 lakh, according to a report of the telecom regulator.

Meanwhile, the company has also taken up a Tk 700 crore project with its own funds. State Minister for Telecom Tarana Halim in a recent programme said the state-owned operator is set to receive Tk 4,500 crore in government funds and loans within the next two years to expand and upgrade its network.

“After completing these projects, Teletalk will be a major contender in the telecom market,” said Ahmed.

Teletalk also has plans to launch 4G services in the country by next year.