Russia's Sitronics and China-based ZTE have signed a formal agreement to form a joint venture for the production of various telecommunications equipment, including mobile communications base stations, in China, according to a Chinese-language report by RusNews.cn. The two companies expect to set up a plant in China and move into production by year-end 2008. A 20% - 25% reduction in production costs is projected for Sitronics's relocation of main production in China.