Telecommunications plan next for Phenix in Nicaragua

     MINAGUA, NICARAGUA -- The Phenix Group has received a letter of guarantee from the Nicaraguan government for a telecommunications carrier license after a fiber optics cable system is installed across the Central American nation, it was announced today by Phenix Group President Rick Wojcik.

     Telcor, Nicaragua’s telecommunications ministry, issued the letter of guarantee after a recent visit to Nicaragua by Phenix Group officials.

     It is the second major commitment of Nicaragua to The Phenix Group this year. Earlier, Nicaragua gave the Florida-based company a license to construct a petroleum pipeline from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. That project awaits a study to determine the environmental impact of the pipeline.

     The plan for the telecommunications project, which is being handled by The Phenix Group’s Telecommunicaciones Phenix de Nicaragua division, calls for extending service to Honduras and El Salvador.

     Shannon Parris, vice president of telecommunications division, said the company “is working closely with Telcor to establish guidelines for the installation.”

     Mr. Parris also said that discussions have begun for international links for the new system with New World Network, owners of the Arcos-1 Caribbean fiber ring, and Global Crossing, owner of the Pan American Crossing Network in the Pacific.

     The fiber optics installation will coincide with the Central American Pipeline Project, according to Gerald Leroux, CEO of The Phenix Group. He said construction is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of next year and be completed by the fourth quarter of 2004.

     Mr. Wojcik said he expects the telecommunications project to add value to the company’s economic picture and offer additional opportunities for investors.

     Mr. Parris said plans call for installation of the latest fiber optic technology and that the cable would be buried up two meters deep along the pipeline’s right of way, which runs across the nation from Monkey Point on the east coast to Port Corinto on the west coast of Nicaragua.

Nicaraguan law requires the telecommunications sector to be privatized by 2005. With completion in 2004, The Phenix Group’s subsidiary would be in a position to be the first privately owned international telecommunications carrier in Nicaragua.

     The Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA) also is expected to gain approval by 2005, making the telecommunications project even more important, Mr. Parris said.

     “We understand that a sound telecommunications infrastructure is necessary to support the international business that will result from the FTAA,” Mr. Parris said. “It is vital that this system be in place to support and attract international business to Nicaragua.”

     Nicaragua’s current telecommunications infrastructure is supported by six satellite up-links and the Central American Microwave System (CAMS).

     Once the network is complete ­­– linking Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador – Telecommucaciones Phenix will complete the gap of communications between Mexico and Panama, according to Mr. Parris.

     For additional information about this and other projects, visit The Phenix Group’s Web site at www.thephenixgroup.com