ICE Asking Permission To Hire More Staff And Purchase Cellular Lines
The Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) is seeking government approval to hire some 917 more people to, what the state institution says, help better telecommunications service to its clients.

ICE currently employes 12,900.

Teófilo de La Torre, ICE's general manager, says that the new positions will cost the institution some ¢4.932million colones a year and will be used to better customer service. "We want to end the lines at ICE offices", said the La Torre.

In addition, ICE is looking for approval to also purchase more cellular lines. By the end of this month, ICE will have sold out completely all of its 600.000 cellular telephone lines introduced last December and will need at least 500.000 to meet the demands.

To purchase the 500.000 lines, ICE says it only needs approval by the Contraloría (Comptrollers office) without a bidding process that could take up to two years. The lines would be purchased by the existing cellular network provides, Alcatel and Ericsson.

If ICE does not receive the approvals in time, thing will go back to the way they were two years ago, when customers had to to wait months on end for cellular service.