China's three telecom operators are expected to spend a total of 400 billion yuan (US$58.48 billion) on 3G networks over three years, the country's top telecom regulator said on Thursday.

China Mobile, the world's largest mobile carrier, plans to invest 58.8 billion yuan this year to build 60,000 3G base stations, which will cover 238 cities by the end of the year.

China Telecom, previously a fixed-line operator, will spend 30 billion yuan this year to build and upgrade its networks and begin 3G services in 100 cities by the end of March, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in a statement on its website on Thursday.

China Unicom plans to spend 30 billion yuan to expand its 3G coverage to 282 cities by the end of this year.

"According to the 3G construction plans proposed by the three telecom operators, the total investment on 3G is expected to reach 400 billion yuan over the three years," the ministry said in the statement.

(China Daily January 23, 2009)