Date:17/05/2007 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/05/17/stories/2007051703302100.htm

Back Tata Tele to spend Rs 600 cr in expanding coverage

Our Bureau

Mumbai May 16 Tata Teleservices Maharashtra Ltd will spend between Rs 500 crore and Rs 600 crore this fiscal, to expand its coverage in the Maharashtra-Goa-Mumbai telecom circle.

TTML is a listed subsidiary of unlisted Tata Teleservices Ltd which has pan-India operations.

The company has a presence in 410 towns and plans to double this during the fiscal, said Mr Charles Antony, Managing Director, TTML, at a newsconference here on Wednesday.

TTML reported a reduced net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. Net loss amounted to Rs 45.9 crore, down from Rs 151.6 crore for the same year-ago quarter.

Higher revenues and cost control helped the company reduce its net loss, said Mr Antony.

The EBITDA grew 75 per cent to Rs 97 crore from Rs 55 crore.

For the fiscal ended March 2007, the company reported a net loss of Rs 309.9 crore, down from Rs 541 crore the previous year.

Revenues grew 30 per cent to Rs 1,422 crore and EBITDA 142 per cent, to Rs 303 crore.

The company ended the fiscal crossing the subscriber mark of three million.

Its cash profit for the year amounted to Rs 131 crore, against a cash loss of Rs 21 crore in the previous year.

On Wednesday, the company's shares declined by 4.38 per cent on the BSE, to close at Rs 27.3