BT, the British telecommunications group, has won a six-year, US$37m (about R390m) deal with the De Beers Group of Companies in terms of which it will provide a wide range of IT services to 70 De Beers sites, including exploration and mining locations worldwide.
De Beers is the world’s largest diamond mining company. BT will provide it with fibre, microwave and satellite communications in remote locations in Canada and Southern Africa, as well as in major cities in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Services that will be supplied include access to business applications and voice and video conferencing.
Because many of De Beers’ sites are remote, travel is expensive and time consuming, making video conferencing a crucial application for the company, BT said in a statement. — © 2014 NewsCentral Media
