Bella Vista Trading Services and Energia Integral Andina select Alcatel-Lucent/IT Telecom consortium for submarine cable network
DECEMBER 3, 2009 -- A new 815-km-long submarine cable network is set to bring Tolu in the Colombian mainland closer to the San Andres island with advanced broadband connectivity in 2010.
Bella Vista Trading Services S.A., an international integrator, and Energia Integral Andina S.A. , an energy equipment supplier and telecom operator in Colombia, selected Alcatel-Lucent in consortium with IT International Telecom, Canada's leading marine service provider, to deploy this first cable link between the mainland and San Andres, which has a population of about 85,000 citizens.
With an ultimate design capacity of 960 Gbps, the submarine cable system will provide the connectivity required to support IP-based services and applications, such as online tourism services and real estate information, as well as e-Education and e-Government applications. It will give residents of the tropical island plus thousands of tourists that visit the island every year access to high-speed Internet service. The mostly bilingual population of the San Andres Island will have access to advanced ICT services to improve their competitiveness in the hospitality and customer care (call centers) segments.
"Alcatel-Lucent's and IT Telecom's expertise will guarantee the deliver of advanced broadband services, while helping set the stage for diversified accessibility to services and business opportunities," says Annais Guerra Delgado, general manager at Bella Vista Trading Services.
"San Andres is a key island for Colombia and this new submarine system is one of the goals that the Government of Colombia seeks to achieve through the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications, led by the Compartel program, in development of the government social policy of communications: all Colombians connected and informed," says William Bolivar Melo, president at Energia Integral Andina. "This submarine cable will provide advanced services to the San Andres Island citizens, fueling its further development."
"Submarine cable networks are a critical enabler for broadband applications that are showing exponential growth rates," adds Romano Valussi, president of Alcatel-Lucent's optical and submarine networks activities. "Further strengthening our presence in the region, this new project will contribute to the robustness, efficiency, and capacity of the global communications infrastructure and broadband penetration in areas where it is still limited."
"The continued cooperation with Alcatel-Lucent will ensure that the customer has the best quality system available," concludes Jacques Levesque, president of IT Telecom. "The extensive experience we gathered in the provision of customer-focused submarine cable services worldwide allows us to ensure a smooth and reliable implementation of the system."
Under the terms of the contract, Alcatel-Lucent will design, manufacture, and commission the submarine cable system, based on its DWDM technology and cables. IT Telecom will design the route and perform marine surveys and installation of the submarine cable system.
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