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Paris, December, 11 2007 — Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE:
ALU) today announced the signature of a turnkey contract for a 4,900 km
submarine cable network with The East Africa Marine System Ltd (TEAMS Ltd.)
consortium – including the Government of Kenya and Etisalat (Emirates Telecom
Corporation) of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The TEAMS network will connect
the port city of Mombasa in Kenya with the port of Fujairah in the UAE offering
the required optical connectivity to bring broadband to all users and
positioning Kenya as a new communication hub. Network installation is scheduled
by the end of the first quarter 2009.
Designed with an ultimate capacity of 640 Gbit/s, the TEAMS submarine cable
network will dramatically increase the regional communication capabilities and
support new high-quality broadband services, such as free Internet for schools,
and Ethernet-based services to further bolster social and economic
development.
“With Alcatel-Lucent’s cable solution, we will bring down the cost of
Internet connectivity and international calls,” said Dr. Ndemo, Information
Ministry Permanent Secretary of Kenya. “As an important economic player in East
Africa, such high speed communications links will support the business
community’s investment in outsourcing services, which are becoming increasingly
popular in Kenya”.
On this occasion, the Chairman of Etisalat Mr. Mohd Hassan Omran said:
“Technology brings significant and proven benefits to the communities and
economies in which it serves. By deploying the first direct connection from
East Africa to the world, we are helping to close the digital divide between
nations. We believe that this project will have far reaching impact on the
continent that will be felt for decades to come.”
“This project is a new milestone in the development of the Eastern African
communication infrastructures,” stated Jean Godeluck, President of
Alcatel-Lucent’s submarine network activities. “Our submarine solutions offer
the flexibly and reliability our customers demand to support the cost-effective
delivery of innovative services. This contract is another significant
demonstration of our strong leadership in submarine network solutions.”
The Alcatel-Lucent managed solution will be based on its 1620 Light Manager
next-generation DWDM submarine platform, and will also include cable and
submarine repeaters. As part of the turnkey contract, Alcatel-Lucent will also
deploy its deploy its 1678 Metro Core Connect (MCC) in the landing stations
located in Mombasa and Fujairah. The Alcatel-Lucent 1350 management system will
supervise all the equipment supplied. A comprehensive suite of professional
services, including project management, engineering, marine operation, and
installation testing and commissioning, will be also part of this turnkey
project.
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