Togolese broadband access provider TEOLIS, which officially launched an LTE-based fixed-wireless service in and around the capital Lome on 22 February 2018, has added fibre-optic capability to its product line, Togo First reports. A wholly owned Togolese venture, TEOLIS has struck an agreement with state-owned electricity utility Compagnie d’Energie Electrique du Togo (CEET) for the deployment of so-called ‘air-fibre-optics’ via the latter’s power poles. The agreement it says, will enable it to offer fibre broadband to Togolese residents, joining another newcomer – Group Vivendi Africa (GVA) – which kicked off its own fibre service in selected neighbourhoods of the capital in March 2018.
According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, TEOLIS received its licence from the Ministry of Posts and Digital Economy on 7 June 2017 when the Ministry granted a pair of internet access provider licences – the other being to GVA – following a tender that reportedly involved a total of 15 participants. TEOLIS subsequently kicked off its ‘operational phase’ on 4 January 2018, and set out its stall to use TD-LTE technology in the capital to offer broadband connectivity to SMEs and large corporations in the initial launch phase.