The acquirer of Bermuda?s Cingular Wireless operation has received St. Lucian government approval to also acquire that country?s Cingular Wireless operation.

The Bermuda-incorporated company recently received regulatory approval to acquire Cingular Wireless operations in Bermuda.

The regulatory approvals will help Digicel move forward with plans to establish a seamless Pan-Caribbean wireless network by acquiring Cingular?s operations here as well as Anguilla, St. Kitts & Nevis, Antigua & Barbuda, and Dominica, and licenses in St. Martin, Guadeloupe, Martinique and St. Barths.

The four-year-old company anticipates a 30 percent increase in its current staff of 1000 by the end of 2006, due to subscriber growth and market expansion.

Locally, the company is still in negotiations with Cingular on some business matters so it has not yet set a target date for its move onto the Island.