LONDON-Recently formed Belgian wireless communications company KPN Orange Belgium NV was awarded the third license to build and operate an 1800 MHz Global System for Mobile communications network in Belgium.
The new company will pay a $225.3 million license fee to the Belgian government and will invest more than $559 million to build the new GSM network, said Orange plc.
Products and services will be launched under the brand name Orange.
The KPN Orange network is expected to be operational by April, with full network rollout completed by the end of 1999. L.M. Ericsson was awarded a $270 million, five-year framework agreement to be the sole provider of the network infrastructure.
Ericsson said it will deliver a turnkey system, including AXE switching, base stations and transport solutions based on MINI-LINK microwave and DXX cross-connect solutions.
Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, KPN Orange is a joint venture equally owned by United Kingdom operator Orange and the Dutch telecom operator KPN nv. The new Belgian licensee plans to provide more than 1,000 full-time jobs in the country within five years. KPN Orange today employs 80 people and expects that number to rise to 250 by the end of this year.
“We estimate that in 10 years, the Belgian market will multiply by four-growing from 1 million to 4.7 million subscribers and reaching a penetration rate of 45 percent of the total population,” said Tom van Heesch, interim chief executive of KPN Orange.
