Offer For First 3G Licence in Saudi Arabia

29th June , 2004

Europe : A consortium led by Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH) submitted an offer for the second GSM and first 3G mobile licenses to the Communications & Information Technology Commission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The consortium consists of OTH, as the qualified operator required to hold a minimum 15% equity interest in the consortium, and Saudi investors.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia represents a promising market for GSM and 3G mobile telecommunications services combining scale, best-in-class wealth and excellent growth prospects. The country has more than 24 million inhabitants and its GDP per capita of US$ 8,500 is the highest in the Middle East North Africa region for countries with a population of over 5 million. The mobile penetration rate in the KSA is approximately 31% and is expected to more than double over the next few years. Saudi Telecom is the only mobile operator in KSA with roughly 7.5 million subscribers.

OTH intends to remain the leading mobile services provider in the region through its primary focus on managing existing core operations in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan and a strategy to invest in mobile businesses in existing or new markets to generate returns in line with the risks.

About Orascom Telecom
Orascom Telecom Holding S.A.E (OTH) was established in 1998 and has grown to become the leading GSM network operator in the Middle East, Africa, and Pakistan . Starting with MobiNil in Egypt, Orascom Telecom continued to expand its GSM licenses and now also covers Algeria, Iraq, Pakistan, Tunisia, Chad, Congo Brazzaville, DRC & Zimbabwe. The company's subscriber base has continued to grow to reach over 8.1 million subscribers at the end of March 2004 as a result of its aggressive strategy to be the primary GSM network operator in the region.

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