BEIJING—China’s Ministry of Railways and Nortel Networks Ltd. announced an agreement for Nortel to provide GSM-Railway switching centers for digital mobile signaling and operational communications spanning 20 of China’s 31 provinces.
Under terms of the agreement, Nortel said the GSM-R switching centers will cover nearly half of China’s national railway footprint, serving both conventional railway lines as well as planned high-speed lines. Seven switching centers will be deployed at key locations nationwide, supplementing two switching centers deployed last year.
China’s MOR said secure and reliable mobile voice and data communications for train drivers, signaling personnel and other operational staffers are priorities as China modernizes its railway network.
For the project, Nortel explained that it plans to deploy its mobile switching center solution.
“MOR’s selection of Nortel switching centers puts us in a favorable position for future business as China furthers its commitment to GSM-R for railway communications,” said Robert Mao, president and chief executive of Greater China at Nortel.
Nortel has won contracts to deploy GSM-R networks in several countries, including the Czech Republic, France, Great Britain, Germany, India, Italy, Spain and Slovakia.
In other Chinese infrastructure news, Nokia Corp. said it won a contract to expand Sichuan Unicom’s GSM footprint in western China.
Nokia said the deal involves deploying its radio and core networks, including its MSC Server System mobile softswitch in four cities within the Sichuan province.
“We are extremely delighted with our progress in the GSM business and deepening cooperation with mobile operators in China,” said Yuan Wei, vice president of China markets for Nokia Networks.
Sichuan Unicom is a subsidiary of China Unicom, China’s second-largest carrier with some 130 million subscribers.
Neither Nokia nor Nortel disclosed the terms of their new agreements. However, the deals are notable since they don’t involve domestic suppliers ZTE Corp or Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. In addition, the contracts shed light on China’s apparent commitment to the GSM suite of wireless infrastructure.
As vendors wait anxiously for China to award its highly coveted third-generation licenses later this year, it’s anyone’s guess as to which vendors will win equipment contracts for what will likely be the world’s largest 3G network.
