SingTel to link Asia, Mid-East, Europe

SingTel to link Asia, Mid-East, Europe

SINGAPORE: Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) said Wednesday it had joined 12 other carriers to plan and initiate the construction of a new submarine cable linking Asia, the Middle East and Western Europe.

The proposed network will provide much needed bandwidth as existing cables along the same route are becoming increasingly saturated, SingTel said in a statement.

"Though the current market situation might not seem conducive to embark on this project, this is the opportune time... to plan and build a network to ease the expected bandwidth bottleneck between Asia and Europe," SingTel's global business vice president, Lim Shyong, said.

Details on price and configuration would not be available until negotiations with suppliers were completed, a spokesman told AFP. -- AFP