China Mobile is ramping up its expansion plans globally, with new headquarters for its European, Middle Eastern and African operations opening in London today. Henry Ge, chief representative of China Mobile UK, told the Financial Times that his group will focus on three areas: emerging markets; overseas Chinese customers wanting to keep in touch with home; and the ‘short-term visiting market’ which includes travelling business customers and the growing number of Chinese tourists. The report adds that emerging markets in Africa and the Middle East are priorities for the operator this year, and it is considering setting up a virtual mobile network in Europe.

Such moves from the world’s largest mobile operator (in terms of subscribers) will pit it against western operators such as Vodafone and Telefónica. Vodafone owns a 3.3% stake in China Mobile. According to the report, Mr Ge admitted that China Mobile’s attempts to grow organically could be slow and take up to five years. Instead, the report states that the operator is looking to co-operate with partners with the ability to manage a robust network.