Vodafone Egypt spending $1.25 billion on network upgrade

Vodafone Egypt (VODE.CA) plans to spend around 9.5 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.25 billion) on upgrading its network over the next three years to keep pace with demand for data services, its CEO said.

Vodafone Egypt, majority owned by British mobile operator Vodafone (VOD.L), is the leading communications player by customer numbers in the country of 90 million.

"Annual investments will represent more than 30 percent of annual revenues," Chief Executive Officer Ahmed Essam told Reuters in an interview.

"By end of this fiscal year in March, we would have spent more than 3 billion (Egyptian) pounds which equals one third of the allocated investments and also more than 30 percent of our yearly revenues in Egypt."

Financing the planned investments will come from internal resources, Essam added. He did not give precise revenue figures for a company which has around 39 million subscribers.