Digicel to invest millions in Barbados' 4G infrastructure over 12 months

Caribbean mobile operator Digicel plans to invest B$25mn (US$12.5mn) in 4G infrastructure in Barbados over the next 12 months, Alex Tasker, commercial director of Digicel Barbados, was quoted as saying by the Barbados Advocate.

"We also continue to invest in our network and by March 2014 we will be doubling our data capacity and extending our coverage across Barbados, he said.

Tasker said that the Barbadian mobile consumer's use of 4G data is increasing at a rapid rate and that the majority of data traffic on Digicel's network is 4G and most handsets used are smartphones.

"We have also been able to analyze their usage patterns as it relates to a general overview of the sites which are most visited and the apps used (YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Google), thus helping to inform our decision to continue the expansion of our 4G capacity," Tasker said.

Digicel has proposed the issuing of US$500mn in senior notes due 2020 to be used for general corporate purposes including investments. The company launched LTE in the Cayman Islands at the end of November, its second LTE market in the Caribbean after Antigua & Barbuda.