Hungarian incumbent Magyar Telekom has applied to the European Investment Bank (EIB) for a €75m (US$102m) loan to help fund a €150m upgrade and expansion of its fixed and mobile networks.
A spokesperson for the telco, in which Germany’s Deutsche…
Hungarian incumbent Magyar Telekom has applied to the European Investment Bank (EIB) for a €75m (US$102m) loan to help fund a €150m upgrade and expansion of its fixed and mobile networks.
A spokesperson for the telco, in which Germany’s Deutsche Telekom has an indirect 59.21% stake, confirmed the EIB application is currently under appraisal.
Magyar Telekom will use the funds to develop its networks between 2014 and 2016, the EIB said in a release.
In a recent statement, the Bucharest-based telco said it aims to boost high-speed internet coverage in regions with sufficient demand, and aims to offer 4G/LTE mobile services to 80% of the population by 2015.
Magyar Telekom reported revenues of Ft156.9bn (US$721.7m) in Q2 2013, up 7.9% from the same period in 2012. EBITDA was up 0.3% to Ft49.8bn (US$229.1m), while the EBITDA margin stood at 31.7%. Net debt at the end of Q2 stood at Ft342.6bn (US$1.6bn).
Earlier this month, the Hungarian regulator extended the licences of the nation’s three largest operators – which also include the local units of Norway’s Telenor and the UK’s Vodafone – to use spectrum in the 900 MHz and 1,800 MHz bands from 2014-2016 to 2022.
The regulator said at the time the changes pave the way to release spectrum in the 800 MHz band, adding that there are plans to launch a tender for other mobile frequencies this year.
