Marconi Communications of Coventry, has reinforced its market lead in Brazil, with a new £26 million order from the state telecoms company, Telepar.

The company’s latest contract in Brazil is for SDH (synchronous digital hierarchy) transmission equipment and a network management system, providing public and private telephony, plus links to the mobile phone system, for the state of Parana. Marconi will also supply long distance communications for Parana, which is Brazil’s second most industrialised region, covering an area of 200,000 sq km.

The order was won against fierce international competition and strengthens marconi’s existing market leadership in the supply of telecoms network equipment to the country, which already stands at 40%.

Marconi Communications Coventry-based managing Director Mike Parton said:

"Brazil is a tremendously important growth market for us. With a population of 160 million covering half of all South America, the country has just one telephone per 10 of its people, but is clearly committed to building advanced telecoms capabilities as part of its strategy for economic development.

"We see Brazil as rich in business opportunities in every area of communications and we are gearing up our on-the-ground activities in the country accordingly."

Mr Parton said that in addition to its existing regional offices in the national capital, Sao Paolo, the company is to open a permanent new headquarters in the country. Marconi is also at an advanced stage in developing a programme to produce some of its equipment locally.

Marconi’s expanding involvement with South America includes a series of major communications infrastructure developments for Argentina, as that country prepares for liberalisation of its telecoms markets in 1999, together with equipment for the development of new networks in Bolivia.

This success comes only a week after Marconi announced to the world that it had developed the first optical equipment capable of meeting the demand on the telephone networks of the next century. From Beijing in China, Marconi launched its PMA optical multiplexer and Smartphotonix range.

Marconi Communications is a world leader in smart broadband transmission and networks integration. It was formed by the merger of GPT Limited, Marconi SpA, GEC Hong Kong and other businesses wholly owned by GEC, a global manufacturer of intelligent electronic systems.