(Ecofin Agency) - In a statement cited by financialafrik.com, the telecom group Comium, owner of the Koz brand, announced an investment of FCFA500 million in Cote d’Ivoire. The firm, which is among the minor operators forced of merger by the Ministry of Posts and Digital Finance, said this sum will be used to expand its network across the country.

Koz highlighted that the investment is part of the strategy of its head office for 2016. The expansion of the network will provide consumers with a service of higher quality. The company added that, in order to successfully expand, it would partner with China International Telecommunication Construction Corporation (CITCC), subsidiary of China of Telecom. The technical partner will renew equipment to allow the firm to rapidly switch to 4G.

However, before all this, the company will have to comply with tax regulation or be forced to merge with Café Mobile and Oricel. On April 2, 2015, the Council of Cote d’Ivoire’s telecom regulatory authority called Comium to pay the debt of FCFA33 billion (32,987,430,629 CFA) it owes. This amount is the biggest portion of the FCFA91,106,183,565 of tax debts that the State is demanding minor operators to pay.