Russia's Sitronics, German Co Invest 16 Mln Euro in SIM-producing JV "

MOSCOW, Mar 16 (Prime-Tass) -- German technology group Giesecke & Devrient GmbH and Russian electronics producer Sitronics, a subsidiary of AFK Sistema, have invested 16 million euros in a joint venture to produce SIM cards, Sistema's President Alexander Goncharuk told reporters Thursday.

The two companies have invested in the project on a parity basis, Goncharuk said, adding that the projected annual production capacity of the joint venture amounts to 30 million SIM cards.

In March production is projected to amount to 150,000 units and is expected to increase to 1 million SIM cards per month "by summer," Goncharuk said, adding that the company plans to get about 30% of the Russian SIM card market.

The joint venture is called Smart Cards Company.

During the first stage the venture is expected to produce various kinds of SIM cards, during the second stage it will start production of bank cards and during the third stage it will start production of a wide range of smart cards, including ID cards and social insurance cards.

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Posted to the site on 16th March 2006