Alcatel-Lucent’s undersea cabling business completed deployment of an undersea cable linking Florida and Ecuador, as well as entered into an agreement to run undersea cable along the coast of Alaska.
The 3,700-mile link from Central America to Florida is dubbed the Pacific Caribbean Cable System and owned by a consortium of telecom operators including Setar, Telconet, Telefónica and United Telecommunication Services.
The undersea network uses multichannel 100 gigabit per second technology with a throughput capacity of 80 terabits per second. It’s designed to support broadband demand in the Caribbean, which is growing particularly around digital TV, sports coverage and tourism-related services.
The PCCS connects Tortola, Puerto Rico, Aruba, Curacao, Cartagena in Colombia, and Maria Chiquita and Balboa in Panama.
“The commercial service of the PCCS system is a significant milestone in the evolution of the communications infrastructure in the CALA region,” said Carlos Pazmino, chairman of the PCCS general committee. “Delivering faster speeds and higher capacity than currently available, PCCS is also a critical leverage for people to benefit from sustainable social and economic growth.”
In Alaska, Alcatel-Lucent is working with Quintillion Subsea Holdings to design and construct a cable system that will run from Prudhoe Bay to Nome. The goal of this deployment is to bring reliable, high-speed broadband access to the Alaska’s North Slope.
The first phase of the project is a 1,100-mile run linking Nome, Kotzebue, Wainwright, Point Hope, Barrow and Prudhoe Bay with the capacity for future extensions to Asia and Europe. Phase one is slated for completion by the end of 2016.
“The Quintillion system will provide high-quality, affordable bandwidth to businesses, government entities and communities throughout Northwest and the North Slope of Alaska, an area that is currently underserved and where environmental conditions present unique operational challenges,” said Elizabeth Pierce, CEO of Quintillion. “ASN has experience working in the arctic environment and their field-proven solution will offer us the flexibly and reliability our customers require to support the delivery of high-capacity bandwidth and innovative services and applications, such as advanced telehealth and interactive education solutions, contributing to socioeconomic development.”
Alcatel-Lucent Submarine Networks has installed more than 300,000 miles of undersea cable around the world.
