The Kuwaiti Mobile Telecommunications Company (MTC) said on Saturday it has submitted an official technical and financial bid for launching a third mobile phone network in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

MTC said in a statement that the Saudi market was "one of the most promising in the region" due to the country's strategic status as well as high population density.

According to Kuwait's official KUNA news agency, the value of the mobile license is estimated to reach over four billion U.S dollars.

Nine companies, from both Saudi and abroad, have submitted bids Saturday to win the license, Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission would study it in the coming weeks, added KUNA.

KUNA reported last week that the current market value of MTC was estimated at 17 billion U.S. dollars.

Launched in 1983, MTC is the first mobile communications firm in the Middle East and operates in 20 countries, including Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon and Sudan.

Source: Xinhua