Bharti Airtel Lanka Private Limited has signed a managed networks deal for its Sri Lanka operations with Huawei Technologies (Huawei).

Bharti Airtel Lanka Private Limited is a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel Limited, one of Asia's leading integrated telecom services companies and Huawei is a leader in providing next generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world.

The three-year deal is valued at approximately $150 million and includes telecom applications and software. With the network deal in place, customers in Sri Lanka can look forward to a host of innovative products and services at an affordable price from Airtel's vast portfolio, said an official spokesman.

The latest custom-built technology from Huawei is expected to reduce Bharti Airtel's total cost of ownership (TCO), as well as enhance its competitive edge. Specifically, Huawei's Distributed Node B will enable Bharti to deploy the network faster and more cost-effectively.

Bharti Airtel, rated among the best performing companies in the world in the BusinessWeek IT 100 list 2007, was recently awarded the license to provide 2G and 3G mobile services in Sri Lanka.

Under the agreement, Huawei will deploy and manage Airtel's core network, Node-Bs and BTSs and comprehensive end-to-end 2G/3G network solutions.

'Bharti Airtel is committed to creating a state-of-the-art mobile network and offering world-class and affordable 2G and 3G services to customers in Sri Lanka. Huawei has established credentials as a global company producing high quality products and solutions. We are delighted to be partnering Huawei in this endeavour of ours,' said executive director, International Operations & Managed Services, Bharti Airtel, Sanjay Nandrajog.Trade Arabia News Service