Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan.27
By Huseyn Veliyev- Trend:
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved the allocation of a loan of about 27 million euros for the development project of broadband Internet in Azerbaijan, a source on the telecommunications market told Trend.
Some 13.7 million euros of these credit resources are intended for the Aztelekom production association, and the rest for Baku Telephone Communications Production Association.
The loan interest rate is 6 percent per annum, according to the source.
"The main condition of the Bank is to provide operators with transparency in financial transactions conducted by them during the implementation of the project," said the source. "The Bank will also oversee the expenditure of the loan."
Aztelekom considered the project profitable, and the payback period will come on the fourth year of its implementation.
Aztelekom production association previously prepared a pilot project for the development of broadband Internet infrastructure in the regions. The project is envisaged to be implemented in the regions with the greatest demand for broadband services.
As a result of the implementation of the project, numbered capacity of telecommunication hubs of Aztelekom will be increased by 45,000 units. In addition, the number of ports of broadband Internet will increase by 100,000 units in 47 cities and regions of the country.
It is also provided to construct 63 cable systems, laying of optic communication lines 245 kilometers long has already been implemented and 35,000 pairs of subscriber networks have been involved.
The main expectations from the project is creation of opportunity in the country to access the broadband Internet at a speed of 30-100 Mbit/s and bringing the number of broadband internet users to 85 percent by 2017. Currently, some 73 percent of the population uses the Internet in Azerbaijan, and the penetration rate of broadband Internet among the population is 55 percent.
edited by CN
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