Hutchison CP Telecom Indonesia To Invest $600 Million On Services

JAKARTA -(Dow Jones)- Cellular phone operator PT Hutchison CP Telecom Indonesia plans to invest a further $600 million from now until 2008 to develop its cellular services, the chief executive of its parent company said Thursday.

"We also expect to net as many as 1 million new subscribers as soon as possible," Hutchison Telecommunications International Ltd.'s chief executive, Dennis Lui, told reporters at the launch of Hutchison's cellular services in Indonesia.

The $600 million investment comes on top of $400 million which has already been spent on developing the company's services.

Lui expects that Hutchison Indonesia will start booking net profit two years after the launch of the service.

HTIL owns 60% of Hutchison Indonesia, while the Charoen Pokphand Group owns the remainder.

Hutchison Indonesia will initially offer its services in 67 cities on Java Island before expanding to the islands of Sumatra and Bali later this year.

The company didn't mention the level of market share it's targeting in its first year of operations.

PT Telkomsel, Indonesia's largest cellular operator by subscribers, controls 52% of the market. PT Indonesia Satellite has around 27%, and PT Excelcomindo Pratama around 16%. The remainder is held by city operators like PT Bakrie Telecom and PT Mobile-8.

-By Linda Silaen and Edhi Pranasidhi; Dow Jones Newswires; 62 21 3983 1277; edhi.pranasidhi@dowjones.com

-Edited by David Bottomley

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 29th March 2007