British broadband co to invest Rs 70 cr in India

AHMEDABAD: Iqara Broadband India Ltd, which offers broadband Internet services in western India, expects its broadband Internet services in India to guide the firm's growth in the new thrust area of telecom.

"India is a key market for us and (we) expect it to drive our growth in this segment," Colin Orr Burns, executive vice-president of Iqara Telecom, told reporters.

BG Group set up Iqara Broadband to mark the company's foray into the telecom and related businesses. It currently operates in India and Brazil.

BG Group offers broadband Internet services in Ahmedabad, Surat and Baroda, while in Brazil it runs broadband and telecom infrastructure.

"We have faith in India to invest. We are here to stay."

Iqara Broadband has nearly 8,000 residential and commercial customers in the industrial town of Baroda and Surat, where it has a gas distribution business through its unit, Gujarat Gas Company Ltd.

"With the launch in Ahmedabad, we expect the number to go up to at least 50,000 over the next few years," Burns said.

EVS Chakravarthy, the chief executive officer of Iqara Broadband India, said the company planned to launch its services in India's financial hub, Bombay, by the end of 2003.

The majority of Internet users in India use dial-up networks and are expected to switch over to broadband since it offers round-the-clock disruption-free connectivity.

Technology researcher IDC expects the number of Internet users in India, which includes those sharing connections and surfing at cyber cafes, to increase to about 40 million by 2006 from about 10 million now.

Burns said Iqara was looking at the possibility of making a foray in retail broadband Internet services in Brazil's capital, Sao Paulo, "as it offered huge potential".

"There are around 300,000 broadband users in Sao Paulo. We want to be part of it," he said. BG Group will invest up to $40 million in Brazil over the next few years, Burns said.

(C)Reuters Ltd.