“Since February 2022, Kyivstar, the largest Ukrainian telecommunications operator, has expanded its 4G coverage to more than 4.4 thousand settlements, and today its high-speed mobile Internet is available to more than 95.6% of the population in the government-controlled territory of Ukraine, up from 94.7% a year ago.
“To achieve such results, more than 18,700 modernization works were carried out and more than 7,000 new base stations were built during the full-scale invasion alone,” the company said in a press release on Thursday.
In early December 2023, Kyivstar reported that since February 2022, the coverage area of the 4G network has increased by almost 4 thousand settlements, for which the telecom operator has built 1.4 thousand new 4G base stations and updated the existing equipment by 12 thousand base stations.
It is noted that the highest 4G coverage rates are in Kyiv – 99% and Dnipro regions – 98%.
It is noted that Kyivstar currently has the largest number of 4G base stations located in Ukraine.
“The expansion of 4G coverage continues even in small towns and villages throughout Ukraine, as well as along highways. In particular, in 2024, 4G coverage was launched in 15 new settlements in Ivano-Frankivsk region, 36 in Lviv region and 38 in Vinnytsia region,” the release said.
According to the release, 225 new technology sites were built along the highways in 2024, which increased the quality of 4G coverage from more than 12 thousand km to more than 12.8 thousand km of international and national roads since December.
“Kyivstar reminded that over the next five years (from 2023 to 2027) it plans to invest $1 billion in the development and restoration of Ukraine’s digital infrastructure, as announced at the International Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine in June 2024. In particular, the additional radio frequency spectrum in the 2100 and 2300 MHz bands, for which the company paid UAH 1.43 billion at the November 19 auction held by the NCCC regulator, will be a significant boost to 4G coverage.
According to the press release, the main advantages of 4G are high data transfer speeds, stable connections and higher network capacity, which provide more comfortable conditions for users to access online services, which is important for remote work, education and telemedicine.
As reported, the number of Kyivstar 4G users increased by 4.3% in the third quarter of 2024 to 15.3 million, or 65.4% of the total subscriber base, up 4.8% percentage points year-on-year.
At the same time, Kyivstar’s mobile subscriber base decreased by 3.3% year-on-year to 23.3 million in the third quarter. The number of Ukrainians living outside Ukraine had an impact on the subscriber base, the quarterly report said.
Kyivstar’s revenue in January-September 2024 increased by 4.7% to UAH 26.86 billion, while EBITDA decreased by 2.6% to UAH 15.13 billion.
