Wataniya Telecom Maldives Private Limited

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In February 2005, the Telecommunications Authority of Maldives (TAM) awarded the second nationwide mobile phone license to Wataniya Telecom Maldives Private Limited (WTMPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait’s Wataniya Telecom. The license allowed WTMPL to build and operate a mobile network in Maldives for 15 years. The new mobile license ended the 16 year telecommunications monopoly of state controlled Dhiveni Raajjeyge Gulkhun Private Limited (Dhiraagu Pvt. Ltd.). WTMPL won the international tender, conducted by TAM in August 2004, by committing the shortest deployment period and highest investment of all bidders. The other three bidders were Telekom Malaysia, Syriatel Mobile Telecom S.A, and India’s Bharti Consortium. All bidders proposed acceptably low tariff commitments. WTMPL planned to spend US$ 40 million to develop the network. The project reached financial closure in November 2005 with a US$ 20 million loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). In addition, IFC mobilized a $7 million parallel loan from the OPEC Fund for International Development. WTMPL began commercial operations in August 2005 and had 50,162 customers by the end of the year.