Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel) is planning to sell an additional 19 per cent of its share capital.

The operator, which is already listed on the Muscat Securities Market, has appointed Bank Muscat as financial adviser.

The company, which is majority owned by the government, has had to cut its margins and improve the quality of its offerings in recent years to keep up with intense competition in its home market. Local Nawras, majority-owned by Qatar’s Ooredoo (formerly Qtel), received a mobile services telecom licence in 2005 and is its main competitor within Oman.

Other GCC countries have also seen their mobile coverage become oversaturated, forcing operators to look beyond the region for growth.

Omantel’s profit totalled RO59.48m ($154.49m) in the first six months of this year, slightly lower than the RO61.16m registered last year.