Telbank launches zl. 600 million telecom investment

Telbank, a telecom enterprise owned by a consortium of Polish banks, will invest zl.250 million in the construction of its 2,500 km-long fiber optics network this year. Today the company begins operation of the first part of its infrastructure linking Warsaw to Bydgoszcz. Another two parts of the network, Katowice-Krakow and Warsaw-Radom, should be ready by the end of May, while the infrastructure connecting Bydgoszcz, Zielona Gora, Opole, Wroclaw and Katowice should be completed this year as well. Funds for the first stage of the project scheduled for completion by the end of this year have been provided by the company's shareholders, including the National Bank of Poland and 14 other banks. The final amount of investment may reach as much as zl.600 million by 2003. Telbank's current value of about zl.800 million is expected to reach approximately zl.1.5 billion after completion of the thee-year investment project. (Puls Biznesu, p.3) M. S.-C.