Primus beats WorldCom to £150m contract

NEWS US-based Primus Telecommunications has snatched a contract worth £150m from industry heavyweight WorldCom. The Major Energy Users Council (MEUC), is made up of 180 UK companies including British Sugar, British Aerospace, Ford and Lex service, and was set up to give the companies better bargaining power for lower costs. WorldCom was awarded the contract last year but after the annual review the consortium decided to put the contract out to tender. Primus was chosen over nine other telcos - thought to have included BT, WorldCom and Cable & Wireless - as the MEUC's preferred service provider and will be recommended to its members for cost effective telecoms services. Andrew Bainbridge, director general of the MEUC, said: "By working with a preferred telecoms supplier we're helping our members benefit from preferential rates that strip the expense out of operating on a global stage." Co-founder and executive vice president of the telco, John DePodesta, denied suggestions that as a relative newcomer to the market it would not be able to guarantee the same levels of service. "Primus runs an international end-to-end network. As such we are able to run a cost effective service and pass on those savings to the customer. We are also able to negotiate favourable termination costs with BT," he said. DePodesta added: "Primus will meet with the individual members to discuss their particular needs in terms of billing and range of services." For more details on the deal watch Silicon.com's exclusive interview with John DePodesta in the Corporate Telecoms Channel next week.