The project is estimated to cost just under $1 billion, reported Bloomberg in May, citing people familiar with the matter
Already set to be the world’s largest subsea cable project, the 2Africa consortium has announced the addition of 4 new branches to their 2Africa cable, now extending connectivity to the Seychelles, the Comoros Islands, and Angola, and bring a new landing to south-east Nigeria.
The consortium - consisting of Telecom Egypt, Vodafone, China Mobile Ltd, Facebook, MTN Group Ltd, Orange, Saudi Arabia-based telecom firm STC, and the West Indian Ocean Cable Company – recently announced a Canary Islands extension as well, bringing its connection-landings to 35 in 26 countries.
Related > New Red Sea and Mediterranean fiber optic cable to be built by Telecom Egypt
Recent marine surveys for the new sections of the cable are estimated to be completed by the end of 2021, according to the companies, with the 37,000km long cable will connect Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
The project is estimated to cost just under $1 billion, reported Bloomberg in May, citing people familiar with the matter.
“One of 2Africa’s key segments, the Egypt terrestrial crossing that interconnects landing sites on the Red and the Mediterranean Seas via two completely diverse terrestrial routes, has been completed ahead of schedule. A third diverse marine path will complement this segment via the Red Sea,” wrote an official statement by 2Africa.
Related > Egypt is on its way to becoming a Data Hub
The subsea cable will improve internet connectivity and services to the countries it connects to, enable access to capacity for service providers at carrier-neutral data centers or open-access cable landing stations, and allow countries to deliver faster and more reliable internet services.
This is expected to encourage and support the development of a healthy Internet ecosystem.
The consortium predicts that the cable will go live in late 2023.
Related > TE and Google sign for TransEgypt solution to enhance Google’s global network
“The significant investment by Facebook in 2Africa builds on several other investments we have made in the continent, including infrastructure investments in South Africa, Uganda, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo,” a Facebook spokesperson said in an email statement to press.
As tech giants look to tap into growing demand for faster data transfer capabilities, from streaming to social messaging, investments in transatlantic links are growing.
Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon now own or lease nearly half of the undersea bandwidth, according to Washington-based research firm TeleGeography. Google alone has backed at least 14 cables globally.
