INTERVIEW - Kazakhtelekom invests in its services in 2000 up to $70 million

/IRBIS, April 5, 00/ - In 2000 the National communication enterprise Kazakhtelekom will invest in its services up to $70 million, has told REUTERS the vice-president of the Company, main technical director Vladimir Kushnir. It includes about $50 million for equipment and $10 million for the building and assembly jobs. The investments will be carried at the expense of own means and loans from the foreign financial institutions, including $50 million credit from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) according to the agreement signed in December 1999. One of EBRD conditions is a limitation on total investments amount. "That is we can not spend more than $70 million", - has explained Kushnir. He has named also City Bank of Kazakhstan among the possible creditors According to Kazakhtelekom, the Kazakhstani market includes 1.8 million telephone lines. At that, as has told Kushnir, the company does not expect for growth of its amount. The Kazakhtelekom's waiting list has been reduced annually by 100 thousand practically to the zero. At the same time, since the fourth quarter of 1999 the gain of new lines installations is observed and today it by 11,681 exceeds volume of refusals. "Probably it is a temporary situation, but the Company will make its best for it will be a tendency. In the 4th quarters of 1999 and in first quarter of 2000 balance is positive, that is installations exceeds quantity of eliminations", - has told Kushnir. Taking into account small capacitance of branch, Kazakhtelekom, which one has approximately 90% of the market, is going to expand business at the expense of increase services quality. He has listed some directions of Kazakhtelekom' work in 2000: - Expansion of a digital net "Dzheiran", which one works today only between Astana and Almaty. Kazakhtelekom promises, that it will capture all regional centers of Kazakhstan. - Transfer of the data and new services within the Internet. Kazakhtelekom is going to introduce so-called Kazakhstan's Internet with low prices. - Progressing of corporate satellite networks. Today Kazakhtelekom has more than 50 satellite stations in the private networks. - Services of intellectual networks or access to the reference services. - Replacement of analog Almaty's stations on digital ones. By the Company's data, its incomes in 1999 have gone down to $250 million from $300 million in 1998. Kushnir considers it as a very good parameter, taking into account tenge devaluation in 1999. At the same time, as he said, Kazakhtelekom managed to save the value of the Company's assets. The Company's expenses in tenge were reduced in 1999 in relation to 1998. "In result relation of assets to operational costs has increased 1.5 times. It is a very bright parameter describing the efficiency", - he has told.