Uninor breaks even in AP, charts expansion

In Andhra Pradesh, Uninor has 4.2 million subscribers and, it is the third circle to reach the milestone

Telecom services provider, Uninor, today achieved its financial break-even in the Andhra Pradesh circle. AP, where Uninor has a subscriber base of 4.2 million, is its third telecom circle to reach the milestone, with the other two being Uttar Pradesh (East) and Gujarat.

“The break-even has been achieved within three-and-a-half years of starting our operations in the circle, courtesy the right and relevant low-cost services being offered to the mass market.

This is giving an edge to expansion,” Yogesh Malik, chief executive of Uninor, told mediapersons here on Wednesday. The company is drawing up an expansion plan for the Andhra Pradesh circle.

This includes adding 50 new express stores on the retail  front to the existing 132 stores. "There are 2,630 network sites in AP and we are adding 140 more out of which 40 are already on air," he said.

Additionally, it plans to have 1,500 new retail points to the current retail presence of 55,000 in the state.

Stating that Rs 15,500 crore was the peak funding earmarked by the company for the Indian market, Malik said Uninor was well within the limits and was expecting to achieve a pan-India break-even by the end of the this calendar year.

On the data services front, he said the company will be coming out with more data plans that were relevant to the mass market. “At present, value-added services (VAS) contribute 12-13 per cent to our revenues. As we evolve, we will see growth both in terms of consumption as well as VAS revenues,” he added. To a query on whether the company was also contemplating focusing on high-end services like 3G, Malik replied in the negative.

“The 2G data prices are taking a new dimension. On 2G, there is so much of innovation that we can do with the browser and services. Once you do that you can see a lot more traction on Facebook and on the email. That’s what we are focusing on,” he added.