National Grid signs £200m network support deal

Cable & Wireless contracted to supply next-generation optical-fibre communications

New comms network to improve power network support

Utility firm National Grid has signed a £207m network support deal with Cable & Wireless, which includes the deployment of optical-fibre communications.

The two-part deal is broken down into a 15-year, £108m contract for the super-fast fibre network rollout, which will be used to support National Grid's core operations, and a five-year managed services deal worth £99m.

"Our Operational Telecommunications Network provides mission-critical services, so it is vital that we picked the right strategic supplier that could support us in the transmission of electricity in the UK," said David Lister, chief information officer at National Grid.

The new network will support National Grid's high-voltage protection, control and other operational applications.

Cable & Wireless will also introduce new network and performance management tools, including a configuration management database. The new network management tools will ensure that when needed, National Grid will be able to rapidly provision and re-route its primary network configuration.

Earlier this year, National Grid signed a £5m mobile voice and data deal with Vodafone.