- The Single Service Provider (SSP), Satellic, to set up satellite-based system
- Tolls on trucks weighing more than 3.5 tonnes
Following their invitation to tender, the three Belgian regions of Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels have awarded the contract for a satellite-based intelligent kilometre charging system for trucks weighing more than 3.5 tonnes to Satellic NV. Satellic is 76 percent owned by T-Systems and 24 percent owned by STRABAG. The competent public agency signed the agreement with Satellic in Brussels. It has a term of 12 years and initially envisages that Satellic will establish the new intelligent kilometre charging system in the next 18 months.
Satellic's contractual partner on the Belgian side is Viapass, the public agency specially set up by the regions of Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels for the toll project. "We look forward to working with Viapass," said Mirka Irena Dworschak, a member of Satellic's Board of Directors, at the signing of the agreement in Brussels. "With its experience with Germany's toll project, T-Systems can make a major contribution to setting up the satellite-based intelligent kilometre charging system."
Now that the agreement has been concluded, Satellic will immediately begin preparations to roll out the intelligent kilometre charging system for trucks in Belgium. The Brussels-based company will conclude cooperation deals with Belgian enterprises in the coming weeks in order to tackle implementation of the system.
Domestic and foreign trucks are to be charged a toll in Belgium in the future. The Belgian regions will define, after consultation with the transport sector, the precise tariffs at a later date. Rates are to differ according to the environmental standard of the vehicle and local and regional circumstances. The Belgian authorities see this revenue as an important contribution to maintaining the country's transport infrastructure.
Satellic will be responsible for establishing and operating the intelligent kilometre charging system. The toll is to be collected with the aid of an on-board unit (OBU) which truck drivers obtain at customer service points. This unit uses GPS signals and mobile communications to record which sections of road have been used by a truck where a kilometre charge is active.
About Deutsche Telekom Deutsche Telekom is one of the world’s leading integrated telecommunications companies with over 142 million mobile customers, 31 million fixed-network lines and over 17 million broadband lines (as of December 31, 2013). The Group provides fixed-network, mobile communications, Internet and IPTV products and services for consumers, and ICT solutions for business and corporate customers. Deutsche Telekom is present in around 50 countries and has approximately 229,000 employees worldwide. The Group generated revenue of 60.1 billion euros in the 2013 financial year - over half of it outside Germany.
About T-Systems Drawing on a global infrastructure of data centres and networks, T-Systems operates information and communication technology (ICT) systems for multinational corporations and public sector institutions. On this basis, Deutsche Telekom's corporate customer arm provides integrated solutions for the networked future of business and society. Some 50,000 employees at T-Systems combine industry expertise with ICT innovations to add significant value to customers’ core business all over the world. The corporate customers unit generated revenue of around 9.5 billion euros in the 2013 financial year.