Dialog to boost SL’s bandwidth with new submarine cable

2 May 2013 05:22 am Views - 4405

Dialog Axiata PLC (Dialog), Sri Lanka’s largest mobile services operator has entered into an agreement with the Bay of Bengal Gateway (BBG) consortium to land a high capacity submarine cable at a Cable Landing Station (CLS) to be located in Colombo, a statement by the company said.

Dialog’s investment in the new high speed submarine cable will trigger the single largest infusion of International Bandwidth to Sri Lanka to date. However, the company statement did not contain the size of the investment.

“Dialog’s investment in a submarine cable system leads on from our aggressive commitment to deliver the fastest and most advanced telecommunications technology to Sri Lanka and to make the downstream benefits of these technologies affordable and accessible to all Sri Lankans. Our investment in a CLS and submarine connectivity to the global internet will infuse further speed and capacity to our broadband offerings spanning enterprise, retail and wholesale solutions,” Dialog Axiata Group Chief Executive Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya said.

He also noted that the recent commissioning of 4G services by Dialog overlaid its advanced 3G HSPA+ and fibre optic infrastructure reaching all districts of Sri Lanka, would empower Sri Lankan consumers and businesses with the power of high speed connectivity.

Dialog’s CLS will be commissioned in the 4th quarter of 2014 signalling an era of abundant availability of International Bandwidth to Sri Lanka’s ICT industry and broadband consumers alike.

The BBG cable will link Sri Lanka and the region, spanning from Singapore to Oman/UAE, to high capacity internet hubs in Singapore and India and to onward submarine cable pipes to Europe and the USA.

Other investors in the BBG consortium include Telekom Malaysia Berhad, Vodafone Group, Infotel Telecom Limited-India, Oman Telecommunications Company S.A.O.G-Oman and Emirates Telecommunications Corporation.

Commenting on the BBG investment Azwan Khan, Group Chief Operating Officer at Dialog Axiata PLC said the provision of this alternate artery will provide a tremendous boost to the overall connectivity from a Sri Lankan perspective as well as providing an affordable, economical option to all players in the Sri Lankan market who require bandwidth to function.

“Accessing international capacity at the lowest rates is essential for Sri Lankan enterprises to remain competitive in a global economy. The new BBG system will have open access at the CLS which provides a state-of-the-art facility for all operators to connect to the world. It will also bring in industry standard best practices to ensure that Sri Lanka’s access framework is aligned with regional hubs including Singapore,” he noted.