What frequency Does Telecel Use?

If you wanted to know what frequencies Telecel uses, then you are in the right place. In this post, we are going to be looking into just that, so let’s dive into it.

Frequencies Used by Telecel Zimbabwe

The carrier code for the Telecel brand is 648 03. The carrier prefix is 73. The size of the NSN is 9. The GSM band is 900(E-GSM). The GSM protocols are EDGE and GPRS. The UMTS bands are B1 (2100) and the protocol is UTMS. Telecel uses the 1GSM bands, 1UMTS bands, and 0 and 0 CDMA bands. The network uses 3 standard protocols GSM, UMTS, LTE, and CDMA.

What is Telecel Zimbabwe?

Telecel Zimbabwe is a mobile network operator in Zimbabwe. It is a company registered in Zimbabwe. The entity has more than 20 branches that are established across the nation. Telcel is the second independently owned network provider. The company has an extensive portfolio that it provisions to its subscribers.

Telecel Zimbabwe was established in 1996 and operations began in 1998 when it was granted a license amongst t5 competitors. The main offices of the company are located in Harare the capital city of Zimbabwe. The company has close to 2.5 million subscribers however this number is dropping since the company has not been performing well compared to its rivals.

The growth of the company has dwindled over time. Telecel service is mainly concentrated in and around urban areas with very little penetration of the rural areas of Zimbabwe.

Background of Telecel

The telecom company was established by the entrepreneur Miko Rwayitare. Telecel Zimbabwe was founded in 1996, however, its operational license was granted in 1998. The main shareholders in the enterprise were Teleceel International (now called Telecel Group) a subsidiary of Orascom Telecoms Company and the Empowerment Corporation.

Orascom is an international telecoms company that has got operations in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. The company owns VEON which has Vimplecom as its subsidiary. Empowerment Corporation is a collection of business organizations. 

Telecel’s operational license was challenged in 1998 due to irregularities. In 2007, further irregularities were levelled against the company by Econet. In 2013 the issue of licensing was again raised by Econet when it disrupted services citing the lack of legal obligation to connect with the company. However, this was soon regularized and interconnection was restored.

The company later faced operational difficulties, caused by the Indigenisation and Empowerment Act. The main shareholders of the company were foreigners and this was not in line with the requirements of the law. For the company to remain viable, Telecel Group had to reduce share ownership to 49%. However, the company opted to sell out all its shares. 

ZARnet purchased the controlling stake from the Telecel group and Kerstel and Selporn Investments own the remainder of the shares.   

Who Owns Telecel Zimbabwe?

James Makamba’s Kestrel Corporation and Jane Mutasa’s personalized Selporn Investments, and ZARnet currently own the company. ZARnet owns 60% of the company’s shareholding which is split between the Zimbabwe Miners Federation, Affirmative Action Group, War Veterans Association, and the Zimbabwe Farmers Union.