Alcatel, the French telecom major, has been awarded a multi-million dollar contract to provide telecom solutions for an 800-kilometre oil pipe-line for the Pak-Arab Pipe-line Co (Papco) in Pakistan.

Alcatel will design, integrate, install and commission all telecommunication applications, including an optical transmission backbone, covering all 18 sites along the pipeline, a statement from Alcatel said yesterday without specifying the exact value of the contract.

The turnkey project was awarded by China Petro-leum Engineering and Construction Group Corporation (CPECC), one of the largest international contractors in China.

CPECC is building the pipeline for Papco, from Mohmood Kot in the north to Karachi in the south of Pakistan. This is one of the biggest projects this year for CPECC.

"We chose Alcatel as our partner as we believe their expertise in the telecom field will help us better meet our customer's requirements. Partnering with Alcatel is a major addition to our competitive edge," said Liu Xihui, project general manager.

"This project demonstrates our strong capability as a global communication solutions provider, to integrate different technology systems for the network demands of our customers. It also highlights our ability to serve the oil and gas market," said Frederic Rose, president of Alcatel's integration and services activities.

Upon completion of the project next year, Papco will be able to provide unmanned, automatic, reliable and flexible communication services along the pipeline, including voice, data and video services.

Papco is a joint venture between Pak-Arab Refinery Co (Parco) and oil marketing companies Caltex, Shell and PSO, with Parco as the majority shareholder. Papco is the owner of the pipeline.

Meanwhile, Alcatel announced its second quarter sales increased by 6 per cent to 3.149 billion euros and income amounted to 21 million euros.