Egypt’s second largest mobile operator, Orange Egypt, recorded a net loss of EGP 40.1 million in the first nine months of 2016, the company said on Sunday.

In a press release to the Egyptian bourse, Orange recorded losses from January to September this year, compared to net profit of EGP 73.2 million recorded in the same period last year.

The company's revenues reached EGP 8.3 billion in the first nine months of 2016, 4.2 percent higher than the same period last year.

Last week, Orange Egypt acquired a new fourth-generation internet services license after signing a $484-million agreement with the national telecom regulator.

In March, Mobinil, the Egyptian Company for Mobile Services founded in 1998, officially rebranded as French multinational Orange, one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators, a year after Orange completed its 99 percent buy-out in a deal worth some 210 million euros.

Orange intends to invest around EGP 2.5 billion this year to upgrade networks and deliver better services and more benefits for some 33 million customers in its single-largest national market.

*The official exchange rate for $1 = EGP8.78