Global Crossing to work with Lucent:Another 150 mill in the bag
NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Global Crossing Ltd. said Tuesday it
has signed a deal with Lucent Technologies Inc. (NYSE:LU - news)
that will provide it with technology and financing to build part of its
planned global fiber optic network.
Hamilton, Bermuda-based Global awarded Lucent a $150 million contract for fiber and
equipment for the ''Pan-European Crossing'' segment of Global's planned worldwide network.
As part of the deal, Lucent will provide financing for this section of the network.
The agreement also provides for financing for future systems, if Lucent is selected as a
contractor, Global said.
Global shares rose as much as 6-3/16, to 52-3/4, in afternoon trade on the Nasdaq stock market.
Global said the deal will provide it with the latest fiber- optic technology from Murray Hill,
N.J.-based Lucent's Bell Labs research arm. Harry Bosco, the chief operating officer of Lucent's
optical networking group, will become join Global's technical advisory committee.
''This combination of Lucent's technological strength and Global Crossing's worldwide reach
will give service providers access to enormous bandwidth with outstanding service,'' Dan
Stanzione, Lucent's COO, said in a statement.
''We're excited to be working with this new class of communications company as it builds the
first independent terrestrial optical fiber network to cover all of Europe,'' he added.
The fiber optic network will be one option for Europeans looking for greater ''bandwidth,'' or
high-speed networking. Global plans to connect 18 major commercial centers in Europe by
2000, with initial services provided in 13 cities in 1999. |
