This means an increase of 75 per cent. Gailtel claims to have emerged as the largest IP-II operator in India, with a bandwidth sales increase from 482 Mbps in 2002-03 to 1230 Mbps in 2003-4. Major service providers like Hutch, Escotel, Tata Teleservices, Data Access, Bharti Infotel, STPI and VSNL are among its customers.

The Gailtel service claims to have maintained a consistent 99.7 per cent availability. Following an in-depth study, leading management consultancy firm Mckinsey has recommended an expansion strategy and suggested a service and network expansion model for the company.

Gailtel will also create an Internet Protocol Multi Protocol Label Switching (IP-MPLS) network connecting 10 cities in the country. Gail plans to expand its network to the south and create intra city networks through a selective build-and-buy process.

The network will be expanded on a marginal cost basis along the proposed National Gas Grid and City Gas networks. As part of this project, Gailtel will create an overall network stretching 20,000 km along trunk routes and another 20,000 Km. of city networks. Since a major part of Gailtel's network shall be along pipelines, the company would be able to provide a whole range of broadband services at a substantially lower cost than competitors.

Going forward, Gailtel is looking to forge strategic alliances / partnerships to strengthen its market presence. It is also exploring possibilities of tying up with broadband service providers for a long-term network lease contract. The company plans to utilise the pipelines laid for its city gas distribution projects across the country, for laying optical fibre cables.

Gailtel will continue operating as a telecom infrastructure provider. It is also nurturing plans to set up data centres and bandwidth exchanges.