Cellular operator MTN has expressed interest, along with 90 other entities, in gaining a licence to run a network in the South East Asian country of Myanmar.
At a media round table after the presentation of the group's results for the year to December, CEO and president Sifiso Dabengwa said there are about 60 million people in the country, but cellphone penetration is under 5%.
According to Wikipedia, Myanmar has been through a series of political and economic reforms since elections in November 2010. Two years ago, the end of formal military rule in the country, previously known as Burma, came about. The previously high levels of Internet censorship have also been trimmed.
Dabengwa says the current network quality is also bad, and two SIMs are required: one for local calling and another for international calls. He says the country offers an "excellent" greenfields opportunity, although the terrain is difficult as it is mountainous and there is much water.
The terrain challenges would impact on the rollout from a cost point of view, says Dabengwa.
Dabengwa says the next part of the process is that bid requirements will be provided by the authority, and then a short-list of between 10 and 15 companies will be released. He adds that, while it is not yet clear, it seems the incumbent, MPT, may be privatised which could lead to it partnering with one of the 90 companies that have expressed interest.
In addition, there is a second, smaller, operator that started as an Internet service provider that may also be awarded a licence, with the idea being that there will be a total of four licences
MTN may look at other opportunities in the region based on their merits, says Dabengwa. "This is really a one-off, this is literally greenfield."
The anticipated cost of the licence could be anywhere between $200 million and $500 million, based on industry talk, Dabengwa adds. He says this has yet to be confirmed, although the regulator aims to issue the licence by 1 June.
Dabengwa adds that telecoms and foreign investment laws have been changed in Myanmar, and the process is streamlined.
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