KPNQwest, (Nasdaq: KQIP) (ASE: KQIP), a pan-European Internet data communications company, connected the 4,500 km 6-city Nordic Ring of its 20,000km EuroRings fibre-optic network, one month ahead of schedule. The Nordic Ring is the fifth, and the largest, of seven, OC-192 self-healing rings in KPNQwest's EuroRings network. It consists of 96 fibre strands, capable of delivering 80 colors per strand at up to 10Gbit/s per color. The 6-city fibre-optic network covers 4,500km and provides high-speed connectivity to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Helsinki, Malmo and Oslo.
When fully lit, the ring will be capable of providing more than 100 Terabit/s of macro-capacity to meet the demands for high-speed communications. The ring includes 38 repeater huts, regenerator stations, secure power supply and back-up to ensure full redundancy and connectivity through a high-capacity undersea cable, which connects to the German Ring in Hamburg. A spare duct is also being constructed alongside the entire EuroRings network to "future-proof" the KPNQwest network.
The network will also leverage KPNQwest parent Qwest's North American infrastructure to deliver seamless connectivity and full network interoperability to over 150 US cities. It is reinforced with over 240 tier-one, transit-free peering agreements, unrivalled bandwidth and macro-capacity connectivity to support US, European and global customers.
When complete, the seven rings, comprising the KPNQwest EuroRings, purportedly will be the largest and wholly owned fibre-optic backbone, connecting 50 European cities. The EuroRings will be fully operational across Europe by end 2001.
KPNQwest will provide its full range of wholesale and retail connectivity, networking and hosting services across the Nordic Ring, including its IP VPN and IP Voice networking solutions for business.
About KPNQwest:
KPNQwest (Nasdaq:EKQIP) (ASE: KQIP) is a facilities-based, pan-European provider of data-centric services based on Internet Protocol (IP). For more information, visit www.kpnqwest.com.