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Lucent lands contract to help Iraq modernize Deal includes technology developed here

Posted on: Monday, 29 March 2004, 06:00 CST

Lucent Technologies has signed a $75 million, two-year contract to continue rebuilding and modernizing Iraq's communications system with products developed in Naperville and Lisle, officials said Thursday.

The telecom company signed the contract with the U.S. Department of Defense with an option to renew it each year for an additional five years.

The deal brings Lucent's business in Iraq up to at least $100 million.

However, Lucent could make more money in the future as engineers look to modernize other aspects of the Iraqi infrastructure, said Steve Levy, managing director and a telecom analyst for Lehman Brothers in New York.

"For Lucent, $75 million is no longer chump change," Levy said. "This is an international contract, which is better for them, and the fact that it's with the U.S. government is a great benefit."

Levy said the contract helps Lucent fulfill two of its goals this year: to develop more revenue overseas and to work more with the government.

Lucent recently completed the installation of 13 switching, optical and network management systems in and around Baghdad under a separate subcontract to Bechtel worth $25 million. That deal was signed last August, Lucent spokeswoman Mary Ward said.

Switches and other technology developed locally are being used in Iraq, Ward said, and work on this latest project already has started.

Lucent is focusing on 12 areas of Iraq's communication and information technology systems, including the public telephone network and the local area networks/wide area networks, also known as LANs and WANs.

The Murray Hill, N.J.-based Lucent is working under the Program Management Office of the Coalition Provisional Authority as part of the overall Iraq Infrastructure Reconstruction program. The office manages the $18.4 billion appropriated by Congress to support the reconstruction of Iraqi infrastructure, the company said.

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