Huawei Works With SELEX Elsag for the Construction of the New United Arab Emirates’ Railway Network

Dubai, UAE, December 12, 2012－Huawei, a leading global information and communication technology (ICT) solutions provider, has been selected by SELEX Elsag as the mobile networks (GSM-R), optical and IP supplier. This first section will be an essential part of the new UAE railway network that will be 1,200 km long by the end of 2017. It will connect urban and industrial areas of the United Arab Emirates and open new links with Saudi Arabia and Oman.

Huawei Enterprise’s wireless network will guarantee highly sophisticated mobile communications along a 266 km portion of the railway line. The new railway line will connect the entire oil-bearing area of Shah and will be the main means for transporting more than 7 million tons per year of granulated sulphur from Habshan to the port of Ruwais for export.

Etihad Rail Company, the master developer and operator of the UAE’s national railway network, after a tender with the participation of more than twenty groups, recently awarded the project for the construction of the first railway line in the UAE to the Joint Venture composed of the Italian Saipem (part of the ENI group) and Maire Tecnimont, together with the Indian company Dodsal Engineering & Construction PTE Limited. Afterwards the Joint Venture selected Ansaldo STS (Finmeccanica Group) for the implementation of the whole technological component of the new line, both for the part that ensures the safety of railway traffic and for the portion concerning information provision to the public.

Huawei’s GSM-R technology for enterprise is vital for improving rail network safety, offering critical communication functions so that train drivers, controllers, civil engineers and crew members that work along the railway line can communicate with each other, and ultimately provides passengers with an enhanced commuting experience that is secure and reliable. Offering standardized railway solutions, Huawei’s GSM-R portfolio allows railway communications to be interoperable between various railway companies and ensures the highest level of service quality at all times – even at the fastest train speeds.

Thanks to Huawei Enterprise’s experience in the development and implementation of LTE networks around the world, the new network is already prepared to implement this latest technology. "This first commercial contract signed with Finmeccanica Group outside of China represents a significant milestone for Huawei Enterprise, and demonstrates our consistent commitment to provide railway operators around the world with mobile communication networks and innovative solutions, as well as the opening of a strategic collaboration worldwide with Selex Elsag and Finemeccanica group," commented Roberto Loiola, Vice President at Huawei Western Europe.

Huawei has been committed to GSM-R technologies research for enterprise since 2002 and today has worldwide leadership in the creation of communication networks that integrate reliable railway information services, systems and software applications into a single ICT system. Huawei GSM-R solutions have already been successfully implemented in China, Europe, Asia and Australia, where they have overcome the great challenge of deploying the world’s highest, longest, and fastest railways in the world. Currently, railway networks that use Huawei Enterprise solutions reach almost one and a half times the circumference of the Earth.

"The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is currently the world's fastest growing markets for rail projects. With rise in demand for efficient and effective means of transport, the increase in metro, tram and monorail projects will lead to the rail market almost doubling in size over the next decade. According to the MEED Railway Report in 2011, the region is undergoing more than USD250 billion worth of planned investment in the railways sector"，commented Dong Wu, Vice President at Huawei Enterprise Middle East.

About SELEX Elsag

SELEX Elsag, a Finmeccanica company, specializes in the design, development and support of hi-technology systems, products, solutions and services to meet the needs of the following business sectors: automation, defense communications, professional communications, Information & Communication Technology (ICT), logistics and mobility, safety and avionics systems. The company has over 7,400 employees and is headquartered in Genoa, Italy.