Mobile handset maker Motorola Inc. predicts increasing sales of 3G mobile phones in 2006, but does not expect it to be a breakthrough year for the 3G mobile market, the head of its mobile phone unit said.

“3G services are not yet at the level that they necessarily would require high-speed data transfers,” Ron Garriques, Motorola’s president of mobile devices, told Finnish business daily Taloussanomat in an interview published on Tuesday.

“Sales of 3G handsets will certainly grow next year, but it will not be a breakthrough.”

Garriques said 3G handsets still had some way to go in improving their technology.

“Chips are not yet small enough and they don’t guarantee a small enough consumption of electricity. In addition, the cost structure in 3G phones is not as efficient as in GSM and EDGE handsets,” he said.

Garriques said Motorola, the No. 2 global cellphone maker, aimed to improve its distribution chain, to help it better compete with market leader Nokia.

“We have the best products, Nokia has a better distribution network. The question is now can we build just as efficient a chain of distribution before they get to our level in their phones,” Garriques was quoted as saying.

He also said Motorola aimed to make a new line of cheaper, candy-bar-style handsets to boost its line-up for emerging markets, traditionally seen as Nokia’s strongest area.