Batelco Signs Agreement with China Unicom at Capacity Middle East 2015
Batelco, the region’s leading partner of choice for international operators, has signed a master bilateral supply agreement with China Unicom Hong Kong, the international business development arm of China Unicom group in Asia Pacific and the Middle East regions, during the annual Capacity Middle East 2015 event, held recently in Dubai.
China Unicom is a world-leading telecom operator in terms of revenue and customer base, ranked in the Fortune Global 500, with 31 branches in Mainland China and 8 overseas subsidiaries. China Unicom offers fixed and mobile telecom services for customers via an extensive domestic and international network. China Unicom owns state-of-the-art telecom networks, providing integrated services nationally and globally.
As a major organisation with operations in 14 global locations, Batelco understands the importance of forming partnerships with organisations of similar calibre. In line with this, Batelco General Manager Enterprise Division Adel Al-Daylami and China Unicom Hong Kong Executive Vice President Yuerui Ma signed the agreement in the presence of officials from both organisations.
Batelco is viewed as a leader in providing global data solutions. It has an established presence in all major areas including the Middle East, Europe, the US, Asia and Africa. Batelco’s 25 active Point-of-Presence (PoPs), and the company’s strategic partnerships and Joint Ventures (JVs) have enabled them to secure a multitude of projects connecting multi-national organisations in disparate locations across the globe.
This new partnership between Batelco and China Unicom will allow the two organisations access into each other’s networks, enabling them to extend their reach into new locations. This will further reinforce Batelco’s positioning, especially in the Asian market, and will allow customers and carriers more access and reliability. Similarly, China Unicom will be able to utilise Batelco’s presence across the Middle East and other regions to reach its customers in more locations.
Mr. Al-Daylami said that this partnership comes at a time when Batelco has been actively establishing a strong reputation in the MENA telecommunications industry and promoting Bahrain as a gateway for global providers who require connectivity into and out of the MENA region.
“Not only will this partnership enable our business customers to connect using China Unicom’s network, but this also allows Batelco to be a driving force behind capturing investment opportunities for the MENA region,” he said.
“We are delighted to add this to our extensive portfolio of strategic partnerships, which demonstrates Batelco’s trusted and resilient network among global providers and customers. It is partnerships like these which guarantee Batelco’s capabilities to meet demands seamlessly and provide services at outstanding value,” added Mr. Al Daylami.
Mr. Yuerui Ma noted that China Unicom is eager to work with Batelco in extending one another’s service reach in and out the Middle East, Mainland China and beyond in order to further enhance their service coverage and portfolio.
“Our extensive network resources at home and abroad, especially our strong cross-border network connectivity in the APAC region will provide a solid ground for the cooperation. We are confident that our partnership with Batelco will boost China Unicom’s competitiveness on the global stage and enhance our international business development,” added Mr. Yuerui Ma.
This year, Capacity Middle East provided telecoms with an interesting platform to discuss the leading topics in the industry such as digital and smart worlds, which Batelco is placing a large emphasis on in today’s era of fast-moving and increasingly digital business. It also gave leading providers the opportunity to interact, exchange, and share knowledge.