Capitalising on its strong West German presence with its Standard Elektrik Lorenz AG subsidiary, Alcatel NV is on the brink of the biggest telecommunications breakthrough yet in the Comecon countries with agreement to take 50% of a joint venture with four East German enterprises to manufacture the System 12 digital telephone exchange under licence at a new plant in Arnstadt. The four local partners are VEB Kombinat Nachrichtenelektronik and Funk & Angelbau in East Berlin, VEB-Betriebe Nachrichtenelectronik in Arnstadt, and Stern-Radio in Rochlitz. The venture is to start production next year and the target is to be making 900,000 lines of System 12 a year at capacity. Standard Elektrik looks to install 1.5m lines by 1995, almost doubling the present number. The joint venture will also market transmission equipment and PABXs. No financial details have been revealed. Siemens, upstaged by the move by its smaller Frankfurt rival, hopes to sign a similar pact at the Leipzig Fair. Alcatel hopes the venture will give it a springboard into the telecommunications markets of other Comecon countries.
