Bandwidth & Cloud Services Group to deploy Ekinops360 optical transport gear in Africa
Ekinops (Euronext Paris - FR0011466069 – EKI) says it has won a deal from pan-African wholesale services supplier Bandwidth & Cloud Services Group (BCS) to supply elements of its Ekinops360 optical transport systems portfolio for a network backbone upgrade. The network enhancement will see the development of long-distance regional optical transport networks capable of 1-Tbps capacity across Africa.
In addition to the backbone work, BCS expects to tackle 44 metro ring deployments to enable 10G traffic from various points of presence (PoP) and towers to the network hub. The fiber network services provider offers infrastructure and connectivity services across Eastern, Central, and Southern Africa. BCS estimates that it supports approximately a third of all internet capacity by data volume in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, South Sudan, and Uganda.
Ekinops says it won the contract award after a competitive tender process. The company’s technology will support both single- and dual-fiber capabilities to aggregate low-capacity circuits to high-bit-rate channels at capacities from 1 Gbps to 1 Tbps. The network will be able to accommodate future demand for backbone capacity increases through Ekinops’ FlexRate coherent channels.
“As one of the leading telecoms infrastructure providers in Africa, it is essential that our network along the railroads in Zimbabwe and DRC, as well as planned submarine cables in Lake Tanganyika and Congo River, aligns with current and future trends and demands,” commented John Orutwa, chief technical officer at BCS. “Having worked with Ekinops on our previous major network expansion, we were already aware of their advanced technology, close, partnership-led approach and world-leading expertise. We are excited to work with them again as key partners in our ambitious expansion plans unlocking next-gen connectivity throughout Africa.”
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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.
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