In its planned configuration, the 17,000 km long fiber optic cable will be operational in the first half of 2012. It will connect 23 countries, either directly for coastal countries or indirectly for landlocked countries.
This will be the first international submarine cable to reach the landmasses of Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Equatorial Guinea. For Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, and Cameroon, which are already connected to the SAT3-WASC-SAFE cable (also co-owned by France Telecom-Orange), ACE will ensure existing traffic while providing the additional capacity needed for future growth.
ACE will also offer the Group's subsidiaries in East Africa and Réunion an alternative route for telecommunications traffic (voice and data) to Europe via West Africa. The northern segment of the cable will also diversify the transport routes between France and Portugal,
a vital resource for economic and social development in Africa.
To carry out this ambitious project, France Telecom-Orange has formed a consortium of 20 members: France Telecom, Baharicom Development Company Ltd, Telecoms Benin, Côte d'Ivoire Telecom, Companhia Santomense de Telecomunicações, Grupo Expresso Telecom, GAMTEL, Telecom International Mauritania, Cable Inc. Consorcio de Liberia, Congolais des Postes et Officee Telecomència, Cameroon Orange, Orange Guinea, Mali Orange, Orange Niger, Portugal Telecom, Republic of Gabon, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone Cable Ltd., Sonatel, and
SOTELGUI.
A key component of the ACE Group's global broadband network
is based on wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), currently the most advanced technology for
submarine cables. With WDM, the capacity of the submarine cable can be increased without additional work. With a total potential capacity of 5.12 Tbps, the system is designed to migrate to the new 40 Gbps technology that will support the ultra-broadband networks of tomorrow.
The project confirms France Telecom-Orange's position as a major player in submarine cables worldwide. Together with the cable linking Leon, Madagascar, Mauritius, and Réunion—soon to be extended to Kenya with the LION2 cable—and the East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy), ACE strengthens the Group's global broadband network in Africa.
The construction of the cable represents a total investment of about $700 million for the consortium, of which around $250 million will be supported by the Group and its subsidiaries.
