Hutch Lanka and ZTE cement relations

Hutchison Telecommunications Lanka has chosen China’s ZTE Corporation as its long-term vendor in expanding and improving its GSM mobile network. The project is aimed at increasing the Sri Lankan operator’s subscriber base to four million, from 685,000 at the end of March 2007, and extending coverage by around 200%, including northern and eastern provinces of the island, over two to three years. Hutch Lanka’s Deputy CEO Lasantha Perera said: ‘We have been working with only one vendor from the inception of our services to now. We are much satisfied with working with ZTE and the new contract we have signed will cover 80% of the population by 2009…On this project with Hutch, ZTE has completed phase one, two and three and the groundwork has already commenced for phases three, four, five and six.’ ZTE also works with other GSM cellcos, Celltel Lanka (Tigo) and Dialog Telekom, and has provided CDMA WiLL infrastructure for fixed line operator Sri Lanka Telecom’s City Link service as well as alternative fixed-wireless operator Lanka Bell.