Engagement with EIG

6 May 2008 13:11

Telecom Egypt S.A.E06 May 2008 Telecom Egypt Announces Engagement with Europe India Gateway (EIG) Submarine Cable System through the TE Transit Corridor - Deal Worth US$50 Million Cairo, 6th May 2008: Telecom Egypt (TE) (Ticker: ETEL.CA; TEEG.LN) announcedtoday the signature of a US$50 million contract with EIG in relation to its TETransit Corridor. The geographic position of Egypt allows for an efficient crossing from the RedSea to the Mediterranean Sea for submarine cable systems. TE being Egypt's onlyfixed network operates the TE Transit Corridor, which comprises the terrestrialinfrastructure linking the two Seas, over multiple diverse and redundant routes.Additional terrestrial routes over the Sinai Peninsula add to the uniqueresilience of the TE Transit Corridor and favourable submarine cable buildeconomics by avoiding shallow waters. The TE Transit Corridor was developed overnearly 20 years to be the route of choice for crossing submarine cable systemsin this geography, which multiplies the benefit of the crossing systems throughTE for their ability to achieve interconnection and restoration with othersystems. The EIG cable system, targeted to be operational in second quarter of 2010, is a15,000 kilometer (9,000 mile) system that will connect 13 countries and threecontinents. Landings are planned in the United Kingdom, Portugal, Gibraltar,Morocco, Monaco, France, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Oman, United ArabEmirates, and India. In addition to complementing existing high bandwidth cablesystems in the region, the EIG cable system will provide much needed diversityfor broadband traffic currently relying largely on traditional routes fromEurope to India. Hence EIG will be the first consortium system to use TE Northand South new landing stations in Sidi Kerir and Ras Sidr, and shall land inEurope in Monaco and connect thereof to Marseille, as well as the UK. 16telecommunications companies are investing in the project: AT&T; Bharti Airtel;BT; C&W; Djibouti Telecom; Du; Gibtelecom; IAM; Libyan Post, Telecom andInformation Technology Company; MTN Group Ltd; Omantel; PT Comunicacoes, S.A.;Saudi Telecom Company; Telecom Egypt; Telkom SA Ltd; and Verizon Business. It's worth mentioning that in November of last year, Telecom Egypt entered intocontracts totaling US$126 million in relation to TE Transit corridor and TENorth with IMEWE, SEACOM and VSNL. This new engagement brings total value ofcontracts signed by TE in this relation to US$176 million. For further information: Ahmed Fathallah Alia A. Allouba Director of Investment, Financial Planning & IR Investor Relations Manager Tel: +2 02 31316699 Tel: +2 02 31315217 Fax: +2 02 31316115 Fax: +2 02 31316116 E-mail: investor.relations@telecomegypt.com.eg Notes to Editors: Within this statement, we may make forward-looking statements regarding futureevents or the future performance of the Company. By their very nature,forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, bothgeneral and specific, and risks exist that the predictions, forecasts,projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved. Youshould be aware that a number of important factors could cause actual results todiffer materially from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates andintentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. When relying onforward-looking statements, you should carefully consider the political,economic, social and legal environment in which Telecom Egypt operates. Suchforward-looking statements speak only as of the time of this release today.Accordingly, Telecom Egypt does not undertake any obligation to update or reviseany of them, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwiseother than as required by applicable laws, the Listing Rules or Prospectus Rulesof the United Kingdom Listing Authority, the Egyptian Capital Markets Authorityor the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange. The documents filed from time totime with these authorities may identify important factors that could causeactual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-lookingstatements. About Telecom Egypt Telecom Egypt (TE), Egypt's incumbent telecommunications operator, started itsoperations in 1854 with the first telegraph line in Egypt. Then it wascorporatized in 1998 to replace the former Arab Republic of Egypt NationalTelecommunication Organization (ARENTO). The Company is the largest provider offixed-line services in the Middle East and Africa with 11.23 million subscribersas at the end of December 2007. TE provides retail telecommunication services including access, local, longdistance and international voice, Internet and data, and other services. Thecompany also provides wholesale services including bandwidth capacity leasing toISPs, and national and international interconnection services. Telecom Egypt'sservices also include the provision of narrowband and broadband internet accessthrough its subsidiary TE Data. TE Data has active operations in Egypt andJordan. TE currently participates in the mobile segment in Egypt by providing mobileinterconnectivity through its current, increased 44.79% holding in VodafoneEgypt, one of the three existing Egyptian mobile operators. TE's shares and GDRs (Ticker: ETEL.CA; TEEG.LN) are traded on the Cairo andAlexandria Stock Exchanges and the London Stock Exchange. 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