ISLAMABAD, Jan 1: Ufone cellular phone company will offer attractive packages after completion of $166 million phase-IV expansion project to add over 200 cities to its network by June, said Ufone's President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Babar Khan here on Saturday.

"We are expecting the current consumer base of 1.9 million to grow over four million in next six months," he said, while speaking at a press conference at his office.

He said Ufone network was extended to 50 more cities during the last six months, which showed 130 per cent increase in its overall customer base during the period. The total investment so far made by the company is to the tune of $350 million, he added.

The existing infrastructure of Ufone, the second largest mobile telephone company in Pakistan, is being upgraded with strong focus on high quality of services, Mr Khan said.

As directed by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority, Ufone has also successfully implemented partial migration to GSM, he said, but conceded that during the process, subscribers might have faced interconnectivity problems.

During financial year 2003-04, the company earned a revenue of Rs770 million, the CEO said, adding that by the third week of January, customer care and help-line services would also register a marked improvement.

About the mobile phone number portability, a requirement of telecommunication deregulation policy, he said the process would not be completed by 2006 as serious technical issues needed to be solved first.

He also brushed aside the impression that existence of increasing number of towers in cities to relay mobile phone frequencies posed serious health hazards. He said no substantial evidence was available to subscribe to this notion.

Deregulated environment has stimulated the market, and the cellular penetration, which still is at five per cent, will further grow in the coming years. In the next four to five years, the total mobile density would increase up to 40 million from existing over seven million, Mr Khan said.

Answering a question, he said Ufone was not considering the two new mobile companies a threat and was the first to sign interconnectivity agreements with them. He, however, was of the view that addition of two more players might not be feasible in an environment like Pakistan's.