GBI Cable System marine operations begin

Dec. 21, 2010
DECEMBER 21, 2010 -- Gulf Bridge International (GBI), the Middle East’s first privately owned submarine cable operator, and its cable system supplier, Tyco Electronics Subsea Communications (SubCom) have announced the start of marine operations on the GBI Cable System.

DECEMBER 21, 2010 -- Gulf Bridge International (GBI), the Middle East’s first privately owned submarine cable operator, and its cable system supplier, Tyco Electronics Subsea Communications (SubCom) have announced the start of marine operations on the GBI Cable System.

This week, cable manufactured at the SubCom facility in Newington, NH, began loading onto the Reliance Class vessel Responder. In the coming months, the ship will install the high-capacity GBI Cable System that has been designed to provide greater connectivity, reach, and diversity to the entire Gulf region.

Scheduled to launch in 2011, GBI will provide a capacity of 2.56 Tbps. The submarine network will offer double landings in Qatar and Fujairah (UAE) with branched landings in Iraq, Kuwait, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman. It also will provide onward connectivity to Europe, Africa, and Asia.

“We are thrilled to mark the commencement of marine operations for the GBI Cable System and truly look forward to the day when the completed system connects the Gulf region to the world, and the world to the Gulf region,” said. Ahmed Mekky, GBI’s CEO. “We remain committed to our ultimate goal of supplying the most advanced broadband carrier services to telecoms operators from around the Gulf and beyond, enabling them to provide their customers with greatly needed capacity, diversity, and choice.”

The GBI Cable System will include 4,750 km of cable, with SubCom deploying several advanced technologies, such as new dual-stage repeaters and wavelength monitoring units. The system will be configured as a self-healing ring in the Gulf, which will provide greater protection from cable cuts than festoon networks. In addition, the system powering will provide for additional layers of redundancy.

Visit Gulf Bridge International

Visit Tyco Electronics Subsea Communications

Sponsored Recommendations

AI and Network Convergence: Transforming Global Connectivity

March 7, 2025
In today’s hyperconnected world, rolling out and managing profitable, high-performance networks for access and transport will require innovative architectural approaches. The ...

Unveiling the Synergy Between AI and Optical Networking

March 12, 2025
Join us for an engaging discussion with industry experts on the intersection of AI and optics. Moderated by Sean Buckley, editor-in-chief of Lightwave+BTR, this panel will explore...

Simplifying and Accelerating Rural Broadband Deployments

March 25, 2025
Explore how government initiatives and industry innovations are transforming rural broadband deployments, overcoming cost and logistical challenges to connect underserved areas...

Innovations Optical Transceivers

March 10, 2025
The continual movement around artificial intelligence (AI) cluster environments is driving new sales of optical transceiver sales and the adoption of linear pluggable optics (...