GTE names Carlos Espinal president of CODETEL, its telecommunications subsidiary in the Dominican Republic; Espinal succeeds Ernst Burri, who is retiring.

STAMFORD, Conn. -- GTE Corp. today named Carlos Espinal president of Compania Dominicana de Telefonos (CODETEL), GTEs telephone company in the Dominican Republic, effective Nov. 1. Espinal, currently general manager of CODETEL, will report to Fares F. Salloum, GTE senior vice president - international operations.

Espinal, 47, succeeds Ernst A. Burri, who will retire Dec. 31 after 25 years with GTE. Burri will continue to serve as a consultant to CODETEL and will be a member of its newly formed board of directors beginning Jan. 1, 1998.

"During his seven-year presidency of CODETEL, Ernst steered the company through dramatic changes, including the transition to a competitive telecommunications market," Salloum said. "We are pleased he will continue to serve in a key advisory role.

"Carlos, with his proven track record in managing businesses in Mexico and the Caribbean, will provide outstanding leadership for CODETEL in the new, competitive era," Salloum said.

Espinal joined CODETEL as general manager in August 1996. He previously served as director - corporate development and a member of the board of directors of AXA, a Mexican industrial group with interests in the electrical, telecommunications, package meats, petrochemical and automotive sectors. From 1992 to 1995, he was president of Conductores Monterrey, a subsidiary of AXA, and chairman of the board of Grupo Primex, a joint venture of which AXA has the controlling interest.

From 1981 to 1992, Espinal held positions of increasing responsibility at Phelps Dodge International Corp., including general manager, Honduras and Thailand; managing director, Venezuela; and vice president and managing director, Mexico. Prior to joining Phelps Dodge, he served the Honduras Telephone Company in a variety of positions, including deputy managing director from
1973 to 1981.

Espinal holds a bachelor of science degree in electrical and telecommunications engineering from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia. He earned a master of science degree in industrial engineering and management from the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok. He also participated in the management development program at Harvard University's graduate school of business administration.

About CODETEL and GTE

CODETEL, a wholly owned subsidiary of GTE Corp., has the largest geographical coverage as well as the most extensive product portfolio in the Dominican Republics telecommunications market. It provides local, long distance, cellular and paging as well as data services, off-shore data entry and Internet access including a regional network access point (NAP), which has transformed the Dominican Republic into an important electronic hub.

With revenues of more than $21 billion in 1996, GTE is one of the largest publicly held telecommunications companies in the world. In the United States, GTE offers local and wireless service in 29 states and long-distance service in all 50 states. GTE was the first among its peers to offer "one-stop shopping" for local, long-distance and Internet access services. Outside the United States, where GTE has operated for more than 40 years, the company serves approximately 7 million customers. GTE is also a leader in government and defense communications systems and equipment, directories and telecommunications-based information services, and aircraft-passenger telecommunications.

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