BARCELONA, Spain, February 17 /PRNewswire/ --

- Pacific Operator Carries More Than 60% of Traffic on Systems Powered by 
Wind, Solar

The GSMA today announced that Digicel, supported by the GSMA Development
Fund, has completed the second phase of its green power network
implementation and is using wind and solar energy solutions to power 25 base
stations on the Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu. Digicel, which is the leading
mobile operator in Vanuatu, now carries more than 60% of its network traffic
on base stations powered by renewable energy sources.

Typically, off-grid base stations have been powered by generators running
on diesel, which is increasingly erratic in price, is costly to distribute
and generates carbon dioxide emissions. Digicel's approach of using solar,
wind and hybrid power provides a more cost-effective and reliable solution
than either solar cells or wind turbines alone, to bring GSM coverage to some
of the most remote communities in Vanuatu.

"By implementing alternative sources of energy, we are able to connect
the unconnected, making communications accessible to many in Vanuatu for the
first time," said Tanya Menzies, CEO of Digicel Vanuatu. "The work we are
doing in Vanuatu is particularly important to the Digicel Group, as it's
serving as a model for alternative power deployments for other Digicel
networks around the world."

Digicel, which launched commercial service in June 2008, recently
completed the second phase in the project, bringing the current number of
green-powered base stations to 25. Additionally, in 2009, Digicel plans to
install a new wind turbine to an existing wind farm to power a portion of its
sites, enabling the operator to reduce its annual power bill by an order of
magnitude.

"The GSMA created the Green Power for Mobile programme with two
objectives in mind: to promote the use of green power to expand mobile
networks into regions currently lacking coverage, and to facilitate the
systematic reduction of reliance on diesel by operators," said Michael O'Hara,
chief marketing officer for the GSMA. "Our work with Digicel further
demonstrates the commercial viability of implementing renewable energy
systems on a broad scale and has helped establish best practices for future
green power projects."

About Digicel Pacific

Since its launch in the South Pacific in November 2006, Digicel has
become the fastest-growing mobile operator in the Pacific, with current
operations in Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea. The company was
recently granted licenses by the Governments of Fiji and has commitments from
several other countries in the Pacific.

Digicel has contributed to the 0.7% growth to the GDP of Papua New
Guinea since its launch as the second mobile operator on July 20, 2007.

Digicel is the largest operator in the Caribbean operating in 23 markets
and rolling out new operations in Central America. The company is renowned
for competitive rates, unbeatable coverage, and superior customer care, a
wide variety of products and services, and state-of-the-art handsets.

For more information, please visit www.digicelvanuatu.com or
www.digicelpacific.com.

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of the worldwide mobile communications
industry. Spanning 219 countries, the GSMA unites more than 750 of the
world's mobile operators, as well as 200 companies in the broader mobile
ecosystem, including handset makers, software companies, equipment providers,
Internet companies, and media and entertainment organisations. The GSMA is
focused on innovating, incubating and creating new opportunities for its
membership, all with the end goal of driving the growth of the mobile
communications industry. For more information, please visit
http://www.gsmworld.com