Dialog Telekom expects 3.1 million subscribers

SINGAPORE: Dialog Telekom Ltd. Sri Lanka's largest mobile operator, said on Wednesday that it expects to increase its subscriber base to 3.1 million by the end of 2006.

The firm - a unit of dominant fixed-line provider Telekom Malaysia and the most valuable stock on the Sri Lanka bourse - holds over 60 percent of the island's mobile market, with about 3 million users as of mid November, Chief Executive Hans Wijayasuriya told Reuters in an interview.

"The sector is growing at 150,000 to 175,000 new customers a month and Dialog will achieve in excess of 60 percent of net adds in the market, due to our wider coverage and portfolio of services," Wijayasuriya said.

This works out to 100,000 to 150,000 net subscriber additions, bringing Dialog's total client base to 3.1 million by the end of 2006, he said.

Dialog, which listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange in July 2005, reported a net profit of 7.55 billion rupees for the nine months ended September, while revenues rose 44 percent to 18.5 billion rupees.

Reuters