RIYADH, 3 March 2008 — Motorola announced yesterday that it has signed a SR 1.25 billion turnkey contract to deploy and manage a 2G/3G mobile communications network for Zain in Saudi Arabia.
The announcement was made at MOTO4YOU, a joint press conference by Zain Saudi Arabia and Motorola, held in Riyadh yesterday.
“We look forward to the launch of Zain in Saudi Arabia and are keen to offer our customers in the Kingdom the voice quality and innovative next generation data communication services that they expect from our networks throughout the region,” said Dr. Marwan Alahmadi, chief executive officer (CEO) of Zain in Saudi Arabia.
Spelling out the terms of the contract, Alhamadi said Motorola will supply its GSM/HSxPA network solutions as well as comprehensively managed services for network design, integration, deployment, operations and maintenance. “This contract brings Zain’s technology preparations and infrastructure requirements another step closer to the planned launch of services in the first half of this year,” Alhamadi said.
“With Motorola’s solid understanding of our business objectives, we are confident that Motorola can deliver the mobile solutions and services we need, efficiently, on time and cost effectively, to launch Zain’s network successfully in Saudi Arabia,” Alahmadi said, adding that Motorola’s experience in the Kingdom encourages Zain to believe that it will help meet Zain’s targets in the Kingdom. Network deployment is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2008 to enable Zain to launch its network in the Kingdom on schedule and allow Zain’s Saudi customers to enjoy high-speed mobile Internet access and a range of mobile multi-media applications and services. “This contract reinforces Motorola’s commitment to continue delivering to Zain high performing, reliable GSM networks that effectively support Zain’s growth plans,” Ali Amer, vice president sales, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan, Motorola Home & Networks Mobility said.
He recalled that Motorola has been a key technical and strategic solution provider to Zain for the last 14 years and pledged to play a predominant role in Zain’s prospective growth in its new venture. “Motorola’s cost-effective GSM solutions and are designed to enable Zain to meet its launch timelines while reducing its operational costs which, unless managed effectively, can be quite significant,” he stressed.
“This deployment also reinforces Motorola’s ongoing commitment to support the growth of Saudi Arabia’s telecoms sector and we look forward to continue supporting the objectives of operators such as Zain to provide Saudi customers with high quality mobile communications services,” Amer said.
