Since 2022, Kyivstar, the largest mobile operator in Ukraine, has invested over UAH 1.9 billion in energy independence of the network and has started the second investment phase, which will include the installation of new batteries at base stations and industrial generators.
“Kyivstar, the largest electronic communications operator in Ukraine, continues to strengthen its investments in energy independence. Since 2022, the total amount of investments aimed at maintaining uninterrupted operation of the network in the face of possible power outages has amounted to more than UAH 1.9 billion,” Kyivstar’s press service said on Wednesday.
As of October 2024, 124 thousand new lithium batteries have been installed at Kyivstar base stations. The operation of key network facilities is supported by 2390 generators. More than 68% of the telecom operator’s network already has a four-hour backup power supply, the press service said.
For the Home Internet service, about 50,000 uninterruptible power supplies have been installed in 24,000 apartment buildings in 92 cities.
“The company also plans to re-backup fixed-line communications with powerful batteries and continues to deploy GPON technology, and from 2025 will build a network exclusively using this technology,” Kyivstar’s press service said.
In addition, the company has launched the second phase of investments, which includes the installation of 113 thousand new batteries at base stations and 1427 industrial generators. The process of installing additional equipment has already begun at technological sites throughout the country, the press service said.
Kyivstar’s goal is to provide 25% of the network with the ability to operate from generators and achieve a six-hour backup for all key facilities. Particular attention is paid to critical facilities identified by the National Security and Defense Council, which are provided with generating capacity to maintain communication for at least three days in the event of full-scale blackouts, the company said.
Earlier, Kyivstar President Oleksandr Komarov said that in the second quarter of 2025, the company plans to increase the battery life to six hours on 30% of the network. He said that up to 65% of the network can operate offline for up to four hours.
As of June 2024, Kyivstar served more than 23 million mobile subscribers and more than 1.1 million fixed-line Internet subscribers.
The company provides services using a wide range of mobile and fixed technologies, including 4G, Big Data, Cloud solutions, cybersecurity services, and digital TV.
Kyivstar’s revenues in April-June increased by 9.5% compared to April-June 2023 to UAH 9.425 billion, and by 0.4% in dollars to $236 million. EBITDA amounted to UAH 5.585 billion or $140 million. Operating profit (EBIT) in April-June this year amounted to UAH 4.16 billion, which is 10.5% better than in April-June 2023 and almost twice as much as in January-March 2024. In the second quarter, Kyivstar’s total operating income from mobile services increased by 8.7% to UAH 8.77 billion, including 10.8% to UAH 5.18 billion from data transmission, while income from fixed-line services increased by 16.4% to UAH 0.56 billion.
Kyivstar’s shareholder is the international VEON Group, whose shares are listed on the NASDAQ (New York) and Euronext (Amsterdam) stock exchanges. In June, VEON announced that it would increase its investment in Ukraine from the current $600 million to $1 billion over five years.
Source: https://interfax.com.ua
