Econet Wireless (Econet) said it is borrowing $60-million from Swedish export credit agency EKN to expand its telecommunications infrastructure, the largest European loan to a Zimbabwean company in over a decade.

Econet, Zimbabwe's largest telecommunications firm, said the loan would enable the company to expand its network in Harare, home to most of the mobile phone operator's subscribers.

Swedish telecommunications supplier Ericsson will install the new equipment.

"Our customers in Harare are increasingly buying mobile phones and this means we require more capacity and capability on the network," Econet Chief Executive Douglas Mboweni said.

Econet, which has more than 4 million subscribers, has said it plans to spend $300-million on its network this year as it seeks to profit from low penetration levels in a country recovering from a decade-long economic crisis.

Reported by Reuters