Dialog Axiata to invest US $ 30mn on new submarine cable

Dialog Axiata PLC, a unit of Malaysia’s Axiata Group said, it will invest US $ 30 million on a new sub marine cable and has entered into an agreement with Bay of Bengal Gateway (BBG) Consortium to establish a Cable Landing Station in South Colombo (Mount Lavinia, off De Saram Road).

The BBG submarine cable system, spanning approximately 8,000 km will link Sri Lanka and the region, spanning from Singapore to Oman/ UAE to high capacity Internet hubs in Singapore and India and to onward submarine cable pipes to Europe and the USA.

The project is expected to be fully commissioned by the end of 2014.

Other investors of BBG consortium include Telekom Malaysian Berhard (Malaysia), Vodafone Group (UK), Reliance Jlo Infocom Limited (India), Oman Telecommunications Company (Oman) and Emirates Telecommunications Corporation (UAE).

Commenting on Dialog’s investment Dialog Axiata Group Chief Executive Dr.Hans Wijayasuriya said, “Dialog’s investment in a submarine cable system leads on from our aggressive commitment to deliver the fastest and most advanced telecommu- nications technology to Sri Lanka and to make the downstream benefits of these technologies affordable and accessible to all Sri Lankan citizens.

The recent commissioning of our 4G services overlaid on our advanced 3G HSPA+ and fibre optic infrastructure reaching all districts of Sri Lanka will empower Sri Lankan consumers and businesses with the power of high speed connectivity. Our investment in a Cable Landing Station and submarine connectivity to the global Internet, infuse further speed and capacity to our broadband offerings spanning enterprise, retail and wholesale solutions.”