Etisalat Misr bought 40 MHz of new bandwidth from the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), Etisalat Misr ِActing Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Hossam ElMeadawy said in a statement (pdf) on Thursday, without providing the value of the transaction.

Two awards in one week: This came in the same week that Orange Egypt announced that it had purchased 30 MHz of bandwidth for USD 440 mn.

Etisalat Misr last acquired spectrum in 2020 when it purchased two 10 MHz bands for USD 325 mn as part of a government tender that also saw Vodafone Egypt and Telecom Egypt acquire 60 MHz between them.

Etisalat’s spending plans: The UAE-based firm will spend EGP 5-5.5 bn to upgrade its services this year, Metwally said.

Background: Mobile network operators have repeatedly asked the NTRA to provide access to new bandwidth since 2017 when the regulator first launched 4G in the country.

IN OTHER TELECOMS NEWS-

New subsea data cable between Egypt and Greece: Telecom Egypt and Greek operator Grid Telecom have signed an agreement to lay a new subsea data cable between the two countries, the Madbouly cabinet and the Greek Digital Governance Ministry said in separate statements Thursday.

The cable comes to advance our plans to become a data hub between Asia, Europe, and Africa. Some 13 cables currently transmit data from Egypt to Europe, while Telecom Egypt plans to add six more cables over three years, along with completing the Hybrid African Ring Path (Harp) by 2023, the statement says. Harp connects landlocked and coastal African countries to Europe through a giant subsea system that will circle all of Africa. Construction is also underway on a telecoms cable linking Malta to Egypt, part of the the 15k-km long Pakistan, East Africa and Europe for Connecting International Networks (PEACE) internet cable that is planned to run from France to Asia and down the east coast of Africa via Egypt.