Axtel EBITDA up 17% in 2Q: CommsUpdate : TeleGeography Research

Mexican wireline operator Axtel has reported a 17% rise in EBITDA for the second quarter of 2006, on the back of a steady increase in subscribers and revenues. Revenues increased to MXN1.414 billion (USD130 million) in the second quarter, from MXN1.241 billion in the same period of 2005, leading to an adjusted EBITDA of MXN503 million, up from MXN431.3 million a year earlier. Axtel launched fixed-wireless services in Celaya in Guanajuato state in June and now has a presence in 16 cities. It targets markets where there is little competition in the local telephony sector other than from fixed line incumbent Telmex; it plans to have networks in 30 to 40 cities by the end of 2007. At the end of June 2006 Axtel had 696,968 lines in service, up from 605,904 at the start of the year.