Transelectrica eyes telecoms

Transelectrica is planning to enter the telecommunications market in the second half of the year, by establishing a joint venture between its IT&Telecom branch Teletrans and strategic partners, Ion Nedelcu, Teletrans general manager said.
The telecommunications operator therefrom emerged will charge the business segment comprising companies operating in multiple points across the country, to which it will offer data transmission services and communication lines for lease. “The new telecom operator will not target residential consumers at first,” Nedelcu specified.
“Transelectrica and Teletrans will be audited in the first half of this year, and then we will invite companies interested to submit letters of intent for negotiations. One of the partners will come up with the necessary cash for investments, while the other will be an experienced telecom company,” Teletrans manager explained.
He added the company would bring Teletrans and the fibre optics surplus of Transelectrica into this venture.
“This way Transelectrica will be the first client of the new entity, to which IT and telecom services will be provided. Transelectrica, however, is not planning to make any additional investments in the new entity and it is too soon to be talking exact necessary cash figures now,” Nedelcu said.
Transelectrica began an aerial line modernisation programme in 2001. The investment is fed by credits from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) – $51.5 million, the European Investment Bank (EIB) – $81.2 million and by a $16.9 million PHARE grant. As soon as the modernisation is completed, Teletrans will have a 36 channel fibre optics network, 14 channels of which used for transmission of electrical network data and consumption metering by the company. The remaining 22 channels are the actual surplus, which Transelectrica will provide to the new telecom operator.
“The installation of the first 900 km of fibre optics will be completed by the end of March, with the works carried out by NK Cables Finland and Electromontaj Bucharest consortium. We will shortly announce the company to install another 2,700 km; the bid selection process is almost over,” Nedelcu said.