A consortium of telecommunication companies comprising Unified National Networks (UNN), ChinaTelecom Global Limited (CTG) of China, Globe Telecom Inc (Globe) and DITO Telecommunity Corporation (DITO) of the Philippines and Singapore Telecommunications Limited (Singtel) of Singapore recently signed agreements to invest for a submarine cable system in Southeast Asia.
Aimed to boost data capacity in the SEA region and upgrade local capacities, the collective cost of investment for the planned Asia Link Cable (ALC) submarine cable system came to about $300 million USD with UNN investing up to $60 million USD (or, $85 million BND).
The ALC will be approximately 6,000 kilometre in length, connecting Hong Kong SAR China and Singapore as its trunk with branches into Brunei Darussalam, Hainan (China) and the Philippines, and is expected to complete construction by the third quarter of 2025.
UNN Chief Executive Officer Dr Steffen Oehler, in a statement, said that Brunei Darussalam, being located on the island of Borneo, is dependent on reliable connectivity to the world.
“UNN is investing in the ALC to provide for growing traffic in Brunei Darussalam and the region, and to increase the reliability of international connectivity of the country,” he said.
He further said that as the national infrastructure operator in Brunei, UNN is complementing the submarine connectivity with accelerated fiberisation of the access networks, higher broadband speed, and investments in Data Centre infrastructure.
“Together with the Borneo IX launched in 2021, we are well prepared for the needs of digitisation nationally and for multinational customers,” added
Dr Oehler.
The ALC will adopt an open cable system architecture to reduce dependency on any single provider consortium partners and expedite the capacity upgrade process in serving internal and customer requirements.
This means individual members of the consortium could select the best
equipment independently from each other depending on their requirements and preferences.
With strategic locations and bullish digital growth prospects in mind, there has been an increased interest to interconnect in the trans-Asian region, enriching the infrastructures for prospective customers.
The ALC will help enhance the existing facilities in catering to future requirements in the region.
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
