Mexico’s government is reported to be in talks with Chinese officials regarding the financing of two state-owned networks which are set to be built to promote competition in the country and serve rural areas.
The country is planning to spend an…
Mexico’s government is reported to be in talks with Chinese officials regarding the financing of two state-owned networks which are set to be built to promote competition in the country and serve rural areas.
The country is planning to spend an estimated US$750m on a wholesale 700 MHz network and a nationwide fibre-optic network which will help smaller operators rival America Movil, which has 70% market share in the mobile market and 80% in fixed.
China Development Bank and other Chinese state-owned banks are in discussions with Mexico about financing the networks, which would likely be built with Huawei equipment, Bloomberg reported citing people with knowledge of the matter.
Mexico plans to start constructing the networks later this year and hopes to have them up and running by 2018. The country is in talks with other parties as well.
Huawei has come under fierce scrutiny in Mexico’s neighbour to the north – the US. Last year one of the vendor’s executives said it was no longer interested in the US market after years of trying and failing to convince Washington legislators that it did not pose a security threat.
Huawei was blocked by CFIUS from acquiring American server company 3Leaf Systems in 2011. In 2008 it was forced to drop an offer to acquire US equipment maker 3Com alongside PE firm Bain Capital.
Politicians have been concerned that the company is an agent of the Chinese government and is unwilling to allow it to control communication infrastructure it considers to be strategic.
