NEW DELHI—Reports are streaming out of India indicating that Motorola Inc. and ZTE Corp. have been eliminated from the bidding process for state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.’s multibillion-dollar contract to build a GSM network that can handle 62 million subscribers.
BSNL reportedly said it disqualified Motorola on the basis of “technical deviations.” The vendor asked the Indian High Court for a stay, but all it got was a request for further details on the bidding process.
The likely contract winners are L.M. Ericsson, expected to nab around 60 percent of the contract, while Nokia Corp. will probably snag the rest of the deal.
Though BSNL was quoted in the Indian press as having dismissed Motorola due to technical shortcomings, it is interesting to note that reports also indicate BSNL’s bidding process specifies that the lowest bidder takes home 60 percent of the contract and the second-lowest bidder gets the remaining share of the contract at the same price offered by the lowest bidder. Ericsson is said to have bid $107 per line, while Nokia is said to have bid $177 per line.
BSNL could not be reached for comments, while Motorola, ZTE and Ericsson didn’t respond to requests for further details.
BSNL is the only Indian carrier to offer both traditional landlines and wireless service across the country.
