Alcatel-Lucent has signed a two year frame agreement, valued at €24 M, with WANA, an operator of fixed and mobile services in Morocco and a subsidiary of the ONA group, to extend and upgrade its telecommunication network in Morocco. The deployment of Alcatel-Lucent's next-generation wireless transmission solutions will enhance the capacity and extend the reach of WANA’s network, enabling it to better meet the increasing demand for advanced broadband services throughout the country.

Under the terms of the agreement, Alcatel-Lucent will supply its 9400 AWY for microwave edge links rollouts, its 9500 MXC — a compact, high capacity platform supporting a wide range of applications including DSL and WiMAX backhauling — and its 9600 LSY for long distance, high capacity applications. The 1350 management suite will supervise the entire solution and the company will provide its network integration, testing and project management services to support this project, while network optimization services, site surveys, training and maintenance services are also included in the contract.

Providing the flexibility required to support data and TDM services, Alcatel-Lucent’s wireless transmission solution will offer a seamless migration path to a next-generation, high capacity microwave infrastructure, while enabling WANA to protect its previous investments. As traffic aggregation and transport from base stations to the core network will be optimized, WANA will be able to offer voice, video and data services with enhanced efficiency and superior quality of service.

“As fixed-mobile convergence is gaining momentum, we are committed to advancing Morocco’s communication capabilities to facilitate access to services for our end-users and further enhance our service portfolio’s competitiveness,” said Karim Zaz, CEO of WANA. “With its scalability and reliability, the Alcatel-Lucent wireless transmission solution is an optimal technological response to meet our customers’ need for high quality, cost effective broadband connections.”