MTN Sudan has signed a 10-year network as a service (NaaS) contract with NuRAN Wireless, a supplier of mobile and broadband wireless infrastructure solutions, for the deployment of rural mobile infrastructure in Sudan.
The parties intend to install a minimum of 500 rural networking sites in Sudan, though this number may increase depending on factors such as penetration rate, ARPU and network charges.
The project will support 2G and 3G with a variety of site categories to cover different population densities and coverage areas. NuRAN expects to retain the ownership of the infrastructure after completion of the contract, which increases the value of the agreement.
NuRAN says that the 10-year agreement is estimated to represent up to approximately US$125 million in revenues over the course of the contract – assuming that the 500 estimated sites are completed.
These revenues are subject to associated project expenses including expenses associated with satellite bandwidth, site lease, network operations centre expenses, curative and preventative maintenance fees, project management and monitoring fees, and insurance.
Fees for the NaaS services provided by NuRAN under the agreement are to be paid on a revenue-sharing basis.
This deal follows recently announced NuRAN agreements with MTN South Sudan (which we reported last December) and MTN Namibia (covered this February), and continues both to build on NuRAN’s NaaS expansion in Africa and expand the company’s relationship with MTN.