Deep Blue Cable, which is the developer, owner and operator of a subsea fibre-optic system that will provide connectivity across the Caribbean islands and the Americas, announed plans for an extension to Colombia and Panama, as well as expand to additional landing points throughout the region.
The extension to Colombia and Panama will necessitate an adjustment to the project timeline. Deep Blue said route survey activities will commence in Q1 2018, with manufacturing and installation continuing through 2018 and into 2019.
Deep Blue is also considering the design of the network in view of the recent extreme weather events in the region, seeking ways to mitigate any future environmental and connectivity concerns. The projected Ready for Service date of the Deep Blue subsea cable system is Q2 2020.
The new Deep Blue subsea cable design spans nearly 12,000 km with initial landing points in 14 markets throughout the region, including the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Colombia, Curaçao, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, and Turks & Caicos Islands, with dual diverse landings in the U.S., which will include the first landing of a cable on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Plans call for up to 8 fibre pairs with an initial capacity of 6 Tbps, and ultimate capacity of approximately 20 Tbps per fibre pair.
“With the planned extension of our subsea fibre-optic cable system to Colombia and Panama, Deep Blue underscores its commitment to the long-term solution of providing advanced subsea connectivity across the Caribbean islands and to the Americas,” commented Stephen Scott, CEO of Deep Blue Cable. “The Deep Blue subsea cable network will have a profound impact not only on the communications ecosystem of the Caribbean, but also on the economic growth potential of an underserved region. Now more than ever, the Caribbean needs resilient communications infrastructure.”
