DALLAS-General Wireless Inc. has signed a five-year vendor financing equipment contract with Lucent Technologies Inc. to build GWI’s personal communications service networks.
GWI PCS Inc., a subsidiary of Dallas-based General Wireless, was the highest bidder for 14 basic trading areas in the Federal Communications Commission’s C-block auction.
Award of the licenses has been contested and the licenses have not been granted yet.
Lucent values the contract at $400 million. It includes $300 million in financing from Lucent that covers the initial construction and additional equipment to increase network capacity.
The contract is subject to the completion of a financing agreement and General Wireless raising additional equity capital.
GWI plans to use digital Code Division Multiple Access technology.
Lucent will do the RF engineering and work with GWI to acquire sites for base stations. Some markets will be built with mini-cell equipment, the companies said, such as San Francisco, Sacramento, Calif., Atlanta and Miami.
Other markets for which GWI said it hopes to receive additional PCS licenses include Stockton, Monterey, Yuba City and Chico, Calif., Athens and Gainesville, Ga., and Naples, Fort Meyers, Fort Pierce, and West Palm Beach, Fla.
General Wireless is a privately held company.
