Province Awards Telecommunications Contracts

Aliant and EastLink have new contracts, announced today, March 5, to provide telecommunications services to the government of Nova Scotia.

The current agreement with Aliant for local voice services is being extended until 2011. The agreement is worth about $5 million per year. The extension will allow the province's IT branch, CITO, to plan how these services will be delivered in the future.

EastLink, owned by Bragg Communications Incorporated, was awarded the contract to integrate government's data network management services. The contract will also expire in 2011, and includes an option to extend it for two years.

"We spend millions of dollars a year on our telecommunications needs," said Murray Scott, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. "We're confident the successful bids on the various contracts will result in the best service, at the best possible price, for taxpayers."

In 2006, government's IT branch developed a strategy for telecommunications services based on consultation with the industry, lessons learned from the previous procurement process, and a review of procurement in other jurisdictions.

Darrin MacKeigan, the branch's senior project manager, said government decided to tender for each service individually and for individual components of data network services.

"The successful bids meet very specific technology and service level standards, and the business needs of government departments and agencies," said Mr. MacKeigan.

Contracts for mobile wireless services, long distance, core data network, regional data circuits, corporate Internet and high-speed Internet services will be announced in April.