RWE signs seven-year network deal with Vodafone to improve efficiency

Utility provider RWE has signed a seven-year, multi-million pound contract to use Vodafone's UK network, in a bid to reduce costs and gain greater efficiency.

Through the contract, Vodafone will provide all network, voice and data services to RWE subsidiaries, including npower.

The contract involves managing telecommunications, video conferencing and internet access across all RWE UK sites, connecting offices, customer contact centres and the monitoring and control systems used in RWE npower’s power generation sites.

It includes all fixed-line and corporate-managed communications services such as LAN, WAN, security, video conferencing, audio conferencing, Wi-Fi, in and out bound voice, contact centre and back office telephony systems. 

Vodafone said it will support RWE's contact centre network, international voice routing and non-geographic number services.

RWE chief information officer, Michael Neff, said: "Given the scope of services we were looking to upgrade, it was important to us that we had a partner who was a good technological as well as cultural fit – I believe that Vodafone met our needs on both levels."

Vodafone is also providing resilient dual connectivity to and from RWE's control systems that run electricity generation.

Vodafone said it has implemented a blend of bespoke and standard services that offer greater efficiencies than the previous in-house model. A Vodafone spokesperson said: “Moving services to the Vodafone standard product enables economies of scale with regard the resources and costs required to deliver the service.”

According to Vodafone, RWE will gain a more accountable and predictable cost structure. It will also support the company's technologies such as the Cisco LAN, APM and WAN infrastructure.