The deal struck by the fastest growing mobile phone operator in Indonesia isn’t just focussed on geographical coverage, however. The operator, a subsidiary of Saudi Telecom Company, is clear in its intention to deliver enhanced data services, mobile broadband and superior quality voice services across its network, which is currently available in over 400 cities across the major islands in Indonesia.
More than 4,000 of the new sites to be deployed by Huawei will be 3G sites. HSPA technology will be deployed across over 45% of AXIS’s footprint, ultimately offering broadband speeds of up to 45Mbps in key locations, AXIS claims.
However, further investment will be required in order to reach these targets. AXIS admits in its announcement that it needs to acquire a second block of 3G spectrum to be able to provide these services to subscribers.
AXIS is in a healthy position, however, following a $1.2 billion financial deal which it struck with local and international financial institutions back in May 2011. At the time, the CFO of Saudi Telecom Company described the deal as “one of the largest Islamic financing deals in Asia and one of the largest international financing deals in east Asia”. The deal was specifically to invest in AXIS’s expansion and growth strategies over the next five years.
Erik Aas, CEO of AXIS, said, “AXIS is well set for its expansion into mobile broadband and improved coverage nationwide. The new funding we have just received will fully support our expansion plans for the next few years, and we are well prepared to further grow our market share and revenues."
