Motorola and Zain to Conquer Saudi Arabia

Motorola just signed a $335 million turnkey contract to deploy and manage a 2G/3G network in Saudi Arabia for Zain (formerly MTC), a leading mobile operator in the Middle East and Africa.

Following the agreement, Motorola will supply its renowned GSM/HSxPA network solutions together with comprehensive managed services for network design, deployment, integration, operations and maintenance.

Expected to commence in the first quarter of 2008, the network deployment will enable Zain to launch its services in Saudi Arabia on schedule in order to provide Saudi consumers with high-speed mobile Internet access and a wide range of advanced mobile multi-media services and applications.

"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 have come to expect from our networks throughout the region," said Dr. Marwan Alahmadi, CEO, Zain in Saudi Arabia. "With Motorola's solid understanding of our business objectives, we are confident that the global company can deliver the mobile solutions and services we need, efficiently, on time and cost effectively, to launch Zain's network successfully to mobile communications customers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Motorola's experience in the Kingdom encourages us to believe that we will meet our challenging targets here."

"This contract reinforces Motorola's commitment to continue delivering to Zain high performing, reliable GSM networks that effectively support Zain's growth plans. Motorola has been a key technical and strategic solution provider to Zain (formerly the MTC Group) for the last 14 years and we are delighted to have played a role in Zain's remarkable growth and success story. Motorola's cost-effective GSM solutions and managed services are designed to enable Zain to meet its launch timelines while reducing its operational costs which, unless managed effectively, can be quite significant," said Ali Amer, vice president sales, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan, Motorola Home & Networks Mobility.

Zain has more than 42.4 million customers in seven Middle Eastern and 15 sub-Saharan African countries. The deployment of its new network in Saudi Arabia (which has more than 21 million mobile users - a penetration rate of about 90%) will consolidate Zain's leading position in the area.