State-backed operator Myanmar Post and Telecommunications (MPT) has built more than 500 towers in Mandalay Region this year, the Myanmar Times reports. The cellco had a little over 200 towers in the area in 2014, but has since ramped up its rollout to enable it to compete with new rivals Telenor and Ooredoo. MPT’s manager for Mandalay, Ye Min Oo, was quoted as saying that the company had increased its coverage of the region from 77% in 2014 to around 98%, adding: ‘We have been urgently rolling out our network across the entire country, as well as in Mandalay Region, with many more towers still to build.’
In addition to the expansion programme, MPT is also planning to upgrade its 3G network, with a view to doubling internet access speeds. The official explained that MPT has lined up an HSPA+ rollout for 2016, to be carried out with the assistance of its Japanese partners KDDI Summit Global Myanmar (KSGM).