Batelco Tuesday announced a massive multi-million Dinar investment in the kingdom’s communications infrastructure with the signing of an agreement that provides a landing station for FLAG Telecom’s FALCON cable system here in Bahrain. The agreement will mean that the country’s global connections are vastly improved via submarine links stretching to Egypt in the west and to Hong Kong in the East.
In addition, Batelco has signed a capacity agreement, purchasing international connectivity on the cable system to allow it to connect directly to any point on the FLAG global network. The capacity purchase will provide a four-fold increase in resilient international circuits into and out of Bahrain and - for the first time - offer loop protection within the Gulf region.
Batelco’s Chairman Rasheed Al-Maraj, said: “This enormous investment represents a tremendous strategic step by Batelco that will allow The Kingdom of Bahrain to benefit from direct connectivity with the world’s key metropolitan centres for the first time ever.
“Bahrain is a high-growth economy and Bateclo is determined to provide the infrastructure needed to support and drive development for our region. FLAG is a leading global provider of international connectivity and we look forward to continuing our long standing relationship with them by bringing this gift of global international access to the Kingdom of Bahrain.”
“FALCON will be the first cable system to provide fully protected connectivity within the Gulf and will allow Bahrain to diversify its current capacity arrangements,” explains Tony Hart, Chief Executive at Batelco. “FALCON will also have many times more capacity than the existing regional links. This terabit connectivity will enable Batelco to confidently roll out broadband and other advanced telecommunications services to our customers, at faster speeds and more cost-effectively than ever before."
Patrick Gallagher, CEO, FLAG Telecom, said: ““These agreements underscore the regional importance of direct connectivity to high-quality, terabit capacity. FLAG has worked closely with our valued partner, Batelco, for many years and - through FALCON - we will continue to support the global connectivity needs of Bahrain and the wider region.”
Walid Irshaid, President, Middle East and Africa, FLAG Telecom, said: “We are delighted to have concluded this agreement. This marks another milestone event in the long standing and successful relationship between FLAG Telecom and Batelco and we look forward to gathering again next year to celebrate the inauguration of the FALCON landing station.”
The FALCON cable incorporates the Gulf region’s first self-healing submarine network ring, providing all countries connected to the high capacity cable with extremely reliable, high quality connectivity. Countries that have the potential to directly access this resilient connectivity include Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran and Iraq. Branching units can be added along the entire FALCON cable route to allow more countries in the region to connect to the system as their communications needs continue to expand.
From the Gulf, the western link of the FALCON system follows a route across the top of the Arabian Sea and through the Red Sea, where it will interconnect with FLAG’s global network at Telecom Egypt’s landing station at Suez.
FLAG’s cable network already spans the globe and the company has an acknowledged reputation for a centralised end-to-end network management, underpinned by exceptional quality and service support. FLAG offers customers east and west routing, meaning traffic can be switched at any time to avoid a cable cut or natural disaster. FALCON is planning to provide additional resilience across the major route from Egypt to Hong Kong and particularly around the Middle East. (menareport.com)
© 2004 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
