21 Feb 2018 09:48

Micran seeks contract to replace all of Gazprom's imported telecom equipment

MOSCOW/TOMSK. Feb 21 (Interfax) - Micran Research & Production Company intends to replace all of the imported telecommunication equipment of Russian gas giant Gazprom over a period of five to eight years, the Tomsk-based company said in a publication in the gas industry journal Gazovaya Promyshlennost.

Micran and Gazprom are now discussing signing a special investment contract for setting up a new production facility in Tomsk Region for automated assembly, configuration and testing of telecommunication systems, the publication said.

Russia's Industry and Trade Ministry and the Tomsk Region administration are supporting this project.

"The implementation of the project will ensure import substitution of all communication equipment used and planned for use in the networks of PJSC Gazprom and its subsidiaries, as well as a significant increase in gross regional product in five to eight years," the publication said.

Micran, under a contract with Gazprom, developed Russia's first trunk radio relay stations for operation in the conditions of the Arctic and Far North in 2016. The equipment was tested and selected as the main communication solution for the construction of Gazprom's Power of Siberia gas pipeline. The company has already secured a contract to manufacture this equipment.

Micran and leading Russian manufacturers of telecom equipment formed the TELMI alliance in 2017. This will make it possible to expand the range of available solutions and ensure the replacement of more than 90% of foreign-made communication equipment used in the communication networks of Russian oil and gas companies, the publication said.