ICE and Alcatel Make Up,
ICE President Says
"There Is No Other
Option"
Despite the scandals
that rocked the country
as alleged payoffs went
high as far as a former
president, the Instituto
Costarricense de
Electricidad (ICE) has
awarded the French
telecommunications firm
contracts worth millions
of dollars, even though
Alcatel faces a judicial
trial for bribery of
public officials.
Last September, ICE
approved the contract
for us$1.8 million for
Alcatel to adapt 70% of
the fixed line telephone
centrals and a cellular
central for the move to
an eigh digit telephone
system that goes into
effect March 20.
In addition to the ICE
contract, the
Radiográfica
Costarricense, S. A. (Racsa),
a ICE subsidiary,
awarded Alcatel a
us$440.000 contract to
provide maintenance to
their TDM node,
according to Racsa
spokesperson, Elbert
Durán.
Durán added that Racsa
has also awarded Lucent
a us$3 million dollar
contract for the
installation of high
capacity data
transmission network
called
metro ethernet.
Lucent is now part of
Alcatel.
Waldemar Núñez, ICE
provider of services,
added that the
institution has awarded
Alcatel a number of
smaller contracts for
parts and maintenance of
various systems.
In 2004 Alcatel was
uncovered to have made
payoffs to high level
ICE officials for it
being awarded the
contract to install
400.000 GSM lines in
Costa Rica. Former
president Miguel Angel
Rodríguez (1998-2002)
was figured as have
received a payoff and is
now waiting his day in
court after having to
have stepped down as
Secretary General of the
Organization of American
States (OAS) only a
month after being
elected to the post and
promptly arrested when
he returned to Costa
Rica.
There is a case pending
as ICE filed charges
against Alcatel and last
year, Pedro Pablo Quirós,
president of ICE,
announced that it would
be cutting all ties with
Alcatel, especially with
the problems of network
coverage and service of
that network.
ICE is also in the
process of claiming some
¢30 billion colones
(us$60.6 million) from
Alcatel because of the
problems with the 2002
purchase and
installation. However,
ICE agreed to drop the
claim in exchange for
some 200.000 additional
GSM lines to be provided
by Alcatel.
Quirós defended the
recent contracts saying
that 70% of the fixed
line centrals are of
Alcatel equipment and
are strongly dependent
on that company as it
has been supplying
equipment for the last
15 years. Quirós added
that as the country
moves to an eight digit
system it had no other
option that to purchase
equipment from Alcatel
to effect the change.
The problem it appears,
is that the maintenance
and upgrade of the
equipment are of
exclusive technology and
that only the original
supplier can provide
maintenance and parts,
explained Quirós.
The ICE president said
that it was better to
have committed to the
present solution of
exchanging more cellular
lines and equipment
rather than wait five or
more years before being
able to collect on its
claim.
Giovanni Bonilla, ICE's
legal director, added
that the exchange of
lines and equipment and
the awarding of
additional contracts to
Alcatel does not
eliminate the claim by
ICE of ¢10 billion
colones (us$20 million)
that is before the
courts for damage to its
image caused by the
Alcatel scandal of
alleged payoffs to ICE
officials.
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