11/11/2008 15h32
In SP, Oi has already anticipated investment plans
Valor Econômico - 11/11/2008
Fifth operator to enter in the São Paulo market, Oi has been having isolated coverage and service to clients problems, but nothing that scares its market director Roderlei Generali. "The level of complaints is low for the size of the operation", he commented. According to him, 1.7 million chips have already been sold, from which 1.53 million were activated, which means that people have started making calls. Last week alone, 180 new towers were installed, which took the number of Oi antennas in operation in the State of São Paulo to more than 2 thousand. "To cover the capital is very difficult. The adjustments are made when problems are detected by the technician or by the consumers", he said. The estimate is that this "fine tuning" stage should last until December. Generali stresses that the network in São Paulo was planned to support a higher use volume than the current one. The strong demand, however, has made Oi review investments and anticipate second semester plans to the first half of 2009. "The way it is, the network's capacity would be over in March", he said. The entrance in the São Paulo marked demanded investments of R$ 1 billion (US$ 465 million) by Oi. Falco already admitted that the strategy should affect operator's profit margin in the end of this year. However, the expectation is that at "some time in 2009" the operation in the State of São Paulo generates positive EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization). "We have no restriction for investments. The more the clients come, the more we will invest", he said. The executive believes that the São Paulo market should grow 15% in the next year.
