Etisalat Lanka brand officially launched; vows to double number of base stations

Sri Lanka’s newest mobile brand Etisalat Lanka was officially launched at a ceremony yesterday. Formerly known as Tigo and owned by Millicom International Cellular (MIC), the cellco has been relaunched by Etisalat of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which purchased the company in October 2009. The Middle Eastern group has promised to double the GSM operator’s existing network of 1,000 base stations, and be more responsive to customers’ needs by offering tailor-made packages, reports Sri Lanka’s Daily News. Etisalat Lanka’s CEO Dumindra Ratnayaka said that the cellco also aims to serve many Sri Lankans working in the UAE and Saudi Arabia by offering them good deals on communicating with relatives back home, via tie-ups with other Etisalat mobile subsidiaries. The firm revealed plans to roll out 450 additional base transceiver stations (BTSs) based on 2G GSM technology and 500 3G BTSs in the next twelve months; more than 100 of the 3G cell sites will be deployed in the northern city of Jaffna and surrounding areas. Etisalat Lanka already covers 95% of the population in the North and East Provinces, which until recently were battlegrounds in a war between government forces and rebel troops. The company said it will also introduce cable TV services in the near future.