CAIRO: Egypt's leading telecom operator Mobinil has said that it hopes that it can begin to be profitable again next year, after a tumultuous two years since a popular uprising ousted former President Hosni Mubarak in February 2011. The company said it was confident that it can return to profits next year. The statement comes after Egypt's regulator approved France Telecom's takeover of Mobinil. “Our position in the market is much better this year than last year,” Yves Gauthier, CEO of The Egyptian Company for Mobile Services (Mobinil), said at a press conference in Cairo. Mobinil in October had reported it had slumped to a net loss of 94 million Egyptian pounds in the first three quarters of 2012, as compared to 76 million for the same period a year earlier. The operator said that those losses were largely the result of switching to a 3G standard used in the developed world. The CEO cited the continued political turmoil and uncertainty in Egypt's future as a major part of the company seeing massive losses, but has hopes it will rebound after two poor years, especially considering Egyptians are using their mobile phones more and more often for their Internet use. “We will continue to invest,” Gauthier said, adding that Mobinil typically invests 2 billion pounds annually. “2013 will be a year of profitability.” Grauthier added that Mobinil was looking to increase its overall services offered and has hopes of getting a 4G license in the near future, although it did not give a timeline for the acquisition.
