Domestic

Huawei makes 1st post-quake shipment to Japan

By Edmond Lococo (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-03-19 09:14

BEIJING - Huawei Technologies Co, the world's second-biggest maker of mobile-phone networks, said it completed its first shipment of "essential" communications equipment to Tokyo since the earthquake in Japan.

Technical teams from Huawei are working to help repair and restore infrastructure, Jessie Pan, a spokeswoman for Shenzhen, southern China-based Huawei said on Friday. All Huawei employees are safe, and some are working from home or an office in Osaka, she said. Pan didn't immediately have details on the current number of employees in Japan.

The magnitude-9 earthquake and ensuing tsunami damaged both fixed-line systems and base stations required for wireless networks run by all of Japan's mobile phone companies including NTT DoCoMo Inc and KDDI Corp, the nation's telecommunications ministry said on Thursday. Huawei's website describes the company as "relatively new" to the Japanese market and a supplier to the Emobile wireless Internet unit of Eaccess Ltd.

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Apart from assisting Huawei employees, "we are also helping our customers in Japan to repair and restore the communications infrastructure by providing technical teams and any necessary equipment," Pan said. "The first shipment of essential telecommunications equipment provided by Huawei has reached Tokyo."

Huawei's Japan unit was established in November 2005, according to the company's website. It has an office in Tokyo that is supported by more than 70 employees, more than half of whom are local workers, the website said.

There were 1,896 NTT DoCoMo base stations out of service as of 7 pm Tokyo time on Thursday, and 707 KDDI stations not transmitting, according to the telecommunications ministry. On Friday, the companies, Japan's two largest mobile-phone operators, declined to comment on whether they use Huawei equipment.

Less than 1 percent of Emobile's base stations are currently out of service and the company can't immediately confirm if it has received any shipments from Huawei, Emobile spokesman Naomasa Suzuki said on Friday.

Bloomberg News