BT leases share in 720km fibre optic cable
BT has reached agreement with Faroese Telecom (FT) to share part of a new fibre optic submarine cable being laid between the Faroe Islands, Orkney and Shetland and the Scottish mainland.
28 November 2007
The 720 km sub-sea cable, which will come ashore on the mainland at Banff, will provide connectivity to the Northern Isles alongside existing microwave radio links. BT has taken out a long-term lease on the cable that FT expects to have up and running by spring 2008.
The move is the first step towards bringing BT’s 21 Century Network, the world’s most radical next generation communications transformation programme, to the islands. BT is investing around £1bn on the new network in Scotland and will be replacing equipment in more than 1000 exchanges across the nation.
Brian Fitzpatrick, MD of BT Wholesale Markets, said: “It is great to have reached agreement with Faroese Telecom to utilise capacity in their cable. This is really good news for Orkney and Shetland, as it will be a key part of BT’s plans to bring the benefits of its 21st Century Network to the islands.
Kristian R. Davidsen, FT CEO, said: “I am extremely pleased with the agreement and the fact that BT is our first customer on our fibre optic cable connecting the Northern Isles and the Scottish mainland.”
FT is negotiating with oil companies to buy capacity on the cable from North Sea platforms to the mainland.
It is the first optical fibre cable to be deployed between Shetland and Orkney and the Scottish mainland. FT’s total investment in the cable amounts to approximately €16.1m.
BT’s 21CN programme is designed to remove duplication across the existing multiple networks and systems to create a single, converged multi-service internet protocol (IP) based network. It will allow customers to customise, personalise and change a growing range of advanced new converged services in real time.