United Arab Emirate’s second telecom operator Du said it has achieved its target of obtaining 30 percent of the mobile market share in the country, 16 months before the stated time.

The company reported a total of 2.3 million mobile customers at the end of the second quarter of 2008, with its active subscribers reaching 1.85 million.

Osman Sultan, chief executive of Du credited the country’s rapid growth and the company’s position as a better value for money service as the prime reasons for the implausible performance delivered by Du.

“The UAE is experiencing extraordinary growth. That''s one track fuelling our own growth and we focus on getting the best market share from this,”he said.

 Du is 40 percent owned by the UAE government, while AbuDhabi-based Mubadala Development Company and the Dubai-based Emirates Communications and Technology Company own 20 percent each. And the remaining 20 percent is held by public shareholders