RETN deploys Infinera ICE4 on TRANSKZ Eurasian fiber network
Infinera (NASDAQ: INFN) says it has supplied its optical transport technology leveraging the company’s fourth-generation Infinite Capacity Engine (ICE4) to RETN, an international network service provider, for use on its TRANSKZ network that connects Europe and Asia terrestrially. TRANSKZ offers three diverse routes between Europe and the Chinese border, running through Kazakhstan.
The TRANSKZ network, operated in partnership with Transtelecom JSC, runs more than 15,000 km. This most recent upgrade, completed this past May, added the final 4000 km of the main fiber route in Kazakhstan. Infinera says it helped RETN deploy services on the network in less than 30 days.
“Our network segment from Kazakhstan to the border of China, which we upgraded earlier in 2019 to complete the TRANSKZ network, experiences harsh weather conditions. We also anticipated other potential issues we’ve had to face working in these challenging territories. So, we needed to find the right solution, combined with the technical expertise of RETN engineers, the local partner, and the vendor, to ensure RETN received superior network performance,” said Tony O’Sullivan, COO at RETN. “The Infinera team provided us with the best solution to meet our needs while working closely with our team throughout the entire network deployment. Many years of cooperation have proven Infinera’s solutions to be highly reliable and operate successfully through harsh environmental conditions along very long routes.”
RETN is a multiregional service provider whose footprint extends from North America to Asia. It has a significant presence across Europe to offer connectivity between several European regions, including Western Europe, Central Eastern Europe and Commonwealth of Independent States countries, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The service provider also is a longstanding Infinera customer (see, for example, “Infinera supplies RETN with XT-3300 and FlexILS to scale network capacity for international customers,” “RETN upgrades regional fiber network with Infinera Cloud Xpress,” and “Infinera nets Russian deal”).
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave
Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.
Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.
He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.
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