The Export-Import Bank of China will underwrite the construction of a CDMA network in Canada for Public Mobile, a new carrier formed in 2008. The financing deal was valued at $350 million.
ZTE will supply end-to-end equipment for the project, including wireless, core network, service platforms and IP architecture. ZTE will also deploy over 1,000 base stations for the network. A commercial deployment commenced in Toronto on May 26 2010 and will be followed by a commercial deployment in Montreal at the end of June.
The loan signing ceremony in Ottawa was attended by China’s Commerce Minister and National Development and Reform Commission Director as well as Canada’s International Trade Minister.
“This is a significant deal for both Public Mobile and ZTE,” said Alek Krstajic, CEO of Public Mobile. “We chose to work with ZTE because of their expertise in technology and commitment to financing. ZTE provides the world’s top mobile operators with high-quality and high-capacity network performance,” added Krstajic.
http://www.zte.con.cn
- In May 2009, The Export-Import Bank of China (China Exim Bank) has granted a US$10 billion credit line to ZTE Corporation. Under the cooperation agreement, ZTE and China Exim Bank will join together to establish a financing platform to support ZTE and its holding subsidiaries in overseas market activities including export seller’s credit, export buyer’s credit, import credit, preferential foreign loans, transferred loans of foreign governments and trade financing, as well as other premium financial services. ZTE agrees to deal with China Exim Bank as a principal banker and handle loans and relevant businesses through China Exim Bank.