BARCELONA - Chinese technology giant Huawei and the Austrian Federal Railways announced here on Monday that they are strengthening cooperation to advance digitalization in the railway sector.

The railway company is teaming with Huawei to develop innovative solutions that will continue to optimize the efficiency of its operations while offering passengers increased security and a comfortable travel experience, according to a joint press release issued during the Mobile World Congress, a key industry expo.

The two sides will set up a pilot installation in Austria to test solutions for various applications in the train environment. They have been working together in digital transformation since 2016.

Christian Sagmeister, head of the railway systems division at Austria's largest mobility service provider, told reporters that further digitalization will benefit both its passengers and business clients.

In addition to building telecom networks, selling consumer devices such as smartphones and laptops, Huawei also has a sizable enterprise business that brings its technologies and solutions to governments and companies. Huawei has been implementing digital railway communication systems since 1996 and its technologies are now used in international rail transport on over 120,000 kilometers of rail networks.