Private Sector Expected to Invest US$450mn

Peru's communications ministry has more than doubled its predictions for investments in the telecommunications sector in 2006 to US$450mn after authorizing rural projects and Telmex Perú's plans to compete in the residential market.

Peruvian communications undersecretary Juan Pacheco said in a statement that private telcos would invest US$450mn this year in projects related to fixed, mobile and public telephony, as well as internet, up from the US$200mn forecasted in March this year.

The March predictions represented a 27% increase over 2005. Of that amount, almost 70% was expected to come from mobile projects, including the tender for the country's fifth mobile telephony band and the expansion of trunking operator Nextel in southern Peru.

The investment amount has increased significantly as the transport and communications ministry (MTC) has authorized a set of projects including rural telephony expansion and a US$1.2mn contract, under which Lima-based telecoms equipment company Valtron will implement a wireless network covering the province of Huarochirí, local daily Diario Correo reported.

"This is the first network of its kind in Latin America. We expect to repeat this experience in other isolated areas of the country," Pacheco said.

The local unit of Mexico's Telmex is also expected to invest US$45mn in entering the residential telephony market to compete with local incumbent Telefónica del Perú.

For the next three years, MCT plans to continue promoting private investments, particularly to expand coverage of telecommunications services to 10,000 rural and urban locations.

BNAmericas.com"

Posted to the site on 26th June 2006