Bharti to build Europe India Gateway cable

Bharti to build Europe India Gateway cable

BS Reporter / Mumbai May 7, 2008

Telecom major Bharti Airtel will be the only Indian service provider to be part of a consortium of 15 global telecommunications majors that will build the Europe India Gateway (EIG) cable system with a project cost of $700 million, the company announced today.

EIG is the first direct, high-bandwidth optical-fiber submarine cable system from India to United Kingdom and is expected to enhance the capacity and the diversity to connect India to the Middle East and Europe. The 15,000-kilometre (9,000-mile) cable system will connect 13 countries across three continents and is expected to carry commercial traffic by second quarter of the year 2010.

In addition to complementing existing high bandwidth cable systems in the region, the EIG cable system will provide much needed diversity for broadband traffic currently relying largely on traditional routes from Europe to India. The EIG cable system, with its large bandwidth and high quality transmission technology, will help meet the present and future growth in telecommunications traffic between the targeted regions.

David Nishball, president, enterprise services, Bharti Airtel said, "There is a tremendous rise in use of data and broadband applications among enterprises and consumers globally, and India is no exception. Whether it is large enterprises leveraging communications technologies to compete in a truly global environment or consumers seeking real-time entertainment over the internet, international connectivity has become a vital part of our lives. As a leading telecommunications provider, we are committed to addressing this demand and providing reliable and resilient global networking solutions for our customers."

Airtel will be operating the cable landing station in Mumbai. The other members of the EIG cable consortium include AT&T, BT, C&W, Djibouti Telecom, Du, Gibtelecom, IAM, Libyan Telecom, MTN Group Ltd, Omantel, PT Comunica