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State-run Mahanagar Telephone Nigam, which had acquired the licence to offer telecom services in Mauritius in 2004, has started operations with international long distance services to begin with.
"We have launched ILD services in Mauritius on June 24. In the first phase of our expansion plan there, we will start fixed line services on CDMA technology from next month," R S P Sinha, CMD, MTNL told PTI.
MTNL was granted licence to offer fixed line, cellular and ILD licences in Mauritius. Other than Mauritius, MTNL has a presence in Nepal along with partners like Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd and Videsh Sanchar Nigam and a Nepali company in a joint venture called United Telecom where it is offering WLL CDMA based mobile and ILD services.
Although MTNL is looking aggressively for overseas operations, Sinha said, "At present there are no immediate plans to enter any other country. We are still examining various possibilities".
The company had earmarked an investment of Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) for rolling out networks in Mauritius. It had won the licences in 2004. Last year it also won licenses for providing fixed line telecom services in Kenya.
The PSU is also awaiting licence to start ILD services from India (Delhi and Mumbai). It has a Letter of Intent of an ILD licence.
Despite, MTNL's restricted operation to Delhi and Mumbai, it has been allowed to tap the overseas market to sustain growth while Bharat Sanchar Nigam is allowed to operate within the country only.