LIME’s East-West cable enters service

The East-West cable will also link Jamaica in the west of the Caribbean to the British Virgin Islands (Tortola) in the East, completing the connection in Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic. It will triple available bandwidth and reduce interconnection costs in the Dominican Republic, a key market in the region.

Accomplished in less than six months and ahead of schedule, the cable system completes a Caribbean “network ring” that increases LIME’s capability to serve carrier customers in North and Latin America, as well as within the Caribbean. The undersea cable enables LIME to meet the rising demand for high-speed bandwidth from consumers and business customers in the region. LIME operates in 13 Caribbean countries, and is developing a range of new fixed broadband and mobile data services for customers, which will require high-quality capacity support.

The new cable is the third new submarine cable built by LIME in the region since 2008, adding to the CBUS cable between Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands and the Gemini-Bermuda cable between Bermuda and the east coast of the US.

“LIME’s network is well positioned to benefit from growth in wholesale markets. The Caribbean is a major traffic corridor between South America and the major internet, content and carrier hubs in the United States--acknowledged as one of the fastest growing inter-continental routes in the world today,” says David Shaw, chief executive officer, LIME.

In hailing the project as a text book undertaking, Shaw says, “The East-West Cable is a valuable addition to our carrier network, increasing the capability and service LIME provides to our carrier customers throughout the Americas and the Caribbean.”

“Our investment in the East-West Cable attests to the growing demand for capacity in the region,” says Martin Fijman, LIME managing director, carrier services, says. “The cable will provide leading-edge broadband capacity and reliable network services to help fulfill that market demand. LIME will keep enhancing its wholesale proposition as we keep leading the provision of capacity, connectivity, and carrier services within the region.”