JSE-listed technology company Mustek has won a contract to supply R128m worth of signalling and telecommunications equipment developed by China’s Huawei to Zambia Railways.
Mustek will supply the equipment to a consortium made up of Huawei International, Bombardier Transportation and Zambian company GMC Technologies. The consortium has been contracted to provide technology upgrades to the value of US$51m (about R550m).
Mustek’s share price was unchanged at R6 in early trade on the JSE on Friday.
According to a report in the Zambia Daily Mail, the $51m forms part of a $120m Eurobond secured by the Zambian government. The newspaper quotes Zambia Railways CEO Muyenga Atanga as saying that the deal represents a “giant step towards bringing back the lost glory of the railway company”.
“We were like a child who was almost dying but now we are very happy that this great asset, which belongs to Zambians, is back to life,” Atanga is quoted as saying.
Bombardier is setting up a base in Zambia as part of the contract, which involves the supply of a computerised radio-based communications system, which, it’s claimed, will be the first such system established in the region. — (c) 2014 NewsCentral Media