There’s good news for Palau and Guam! And this is good news even for travelers heading to these places, too. There is a recent development in terms of interconnectivity with Southeast Asia and the US that will create milestones on the services and communities of Palau and Guam.
Things will get busier in Palau this time of the year because of the recent agreement between Globe Telecom and Belau Submarine Cable Corporation (BSCC) that would allow a submarine fiber optic cable spur to be put up from the Palau to interconnect with the Southeast Asia-United States (SEA-US) cable onward to Guam.
Experts from Japan (NEC, the submarine cable network supplier), Sweden (Flexenclosure, the Cable Landing Station supplier), and from the Pacific (the BSCC Project Management Unit) will arrive to install equipment and ensure the highest quality standards. Surangel’s, the local contractors, are also busy preparing the Ngeremlengui landing site.
Globe (Philippines) and Telin (Indonesia) are major owners of SEA-US, a new cable that will link Indonesia and the Philippines to the USA via Guam and Hawaii, in partnership with GTA (Guam), RTI (USA) and Hawaiian Telecom (USA).
On May 4, 2017 at the Hyatt Regency in Guam, Globe President and CEO Ernest Cu and BSCC Chairman George Rechucher signed the agreement. “We are excited about the commissioning of the SEA-US Cable because of its immense benefits to the Philippines. Additionally, we are proud to be able to provide the Republic of Palau with 1st world Internet connectivity through this interconnection agreement,” Cu said.
Similarly, FSM Secretary of the Department of Transportation, Communication & Infrastructure Lukner Weilbacher inked a similar agreement with the Chief Technology Officer of Telin, Pak Nanang Hendarno. Witnessing the signing of both agreements were Palau President Tommy Remengesau, Jr. and FSM President Peter Christian, along with President Heine of the Marshall Islands.
The project cost is estimated at around USD250 million, wherein the 14,000-kilometer cable system will consist of two fiber pairs with an initial design capacity of 20 terabits per second and will use the latest in submarine fiber-optic technology with 100 gigabits per second transmission equipment per pair. Such additional capacity will cater to the exponential growth of bandwidth between Southeast Asia and the US.
President Remengesau said: “I am delighted to see this milestone marked today. The submarine fiber network will be critical to so many aspects of our life in Palau, from healthcare to education, from social networking to business. With the BSCC network expected to be in service before the end of the year, Palau is on the move.”
The Interconnection Agreements provide for five 100 Gigabit per second wavelengths to Guam, more than 1000 times the current capacity available in Palau, and will provide a big boost to businesses, schools, hospitals and clinics, government services, entertainment and social networking. The BSCC project is currently on schedule, and is expected to be in service in December 2017.
The Minister of Finance, Hon. Elbuchel Sadang said, “BSCC has been positioned to deliver abundant capacity to our retail service providers in Palau at cost, ensuring maximum benefit to the community and commerce. We expect our service providers will step up to the plate and make the most of this opportunity to transform their businesses.”