Chinese firm to invest $200m in telecoms
By Imran Ayub
KARACHI: Huawei Technologies, a major Chinese telecom equipment firm, plans another to invest another $200 million within six months to set up CDMA and GSM handsets assembling plants in Pakistan and implement optical fibre access network for Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL).
The fresh plan of the Chinese giant, which has already invested $200 million so far in Pakistan, came after the PTCL selected the company as a strategic partner for deployment of nationwide wireless local loop network in the country, a senior telecom ministry official said.
“Now the company intends to initially set up CDMA and GSM handsets in Pakistan,” the official said. “Then it may further extends it to the sole manufacturing of the sets.”
He said the introduction of WLL service by the PTCL and other companies encouraged the company to take the initiative, which initially would provide CDMA handsets to PTCL and later may offer them to private companies as well.
The company’s officials have recently apprised officials at the telecom and investment ministries about their future plans, the official said.
In February, PTCL launched a $500 million WLL project to provide new telephone connections in remote areas of the country. The project materialised last month when the state-owned telecom started WLL service from Punjab, which it would later expand to other several areas.
Similarly, following the deregulation of the sector the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has awarded 98 local loop and 12 long distance international licences to 31 private companies, which would also introduce WLL services mainly far flung areas.
Operations will expand: The official said the rising trend of wireless services both in local loop and cellular inspired the Chinese firm to expand its operations in Pakistan.
“The telecom ministry already directed the PTCL not to import handsets for WLL service but bound any manufacturing company to set up its production plant in the country,” the official said.
“The reason was very simple. The PTCL is going to provide over 2 million WLL connections in the first phase and this number would rise in near future, which means that it would need minimum 2 million handsets, which is not a nominal figure.”
The WLL is a CDMA (code direct multiplier access)-based technology almost similar to a mobile cellular phones system.
According to PTCL’s plan, the system would provide telephone access to 127 cities in the areas where 60 to 70 percent people never had access to any telecom connectivity.
Optic fibre network: The official said fresh investment by the Chinese firm would also focus on optical fibre access network for PTCL, which is already being carried out by the company.
“This includes 356-kilometre long optical fibre cable consisting of 2.5 gbs/10 gbs and broadband system metropolitan area network, as per its agreement with the PTCL,” the official said.
“The project of optical fibre access network in major cities like Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi has been conceived to speed up the last mile solution of PTCL network according to the prevailing telecommunication requirements set by International Telecommu-nication Union.”
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_12-11-2004_pg5_1
Hopefully this would lead into decreasing the phone and Broadband charges.