Alcatel-Lucent's undersea cable-laying ship, Ile de Batz. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

Paris, France - September 2, 2010

eFive Telecoms selects Alcatel-Lucent to build new submarine cable network linking West Africa to South America

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) today announced that it has been selected by eFive Telecoms, a South African telecommunications company, to build a new submarine cable network linking the west coast of Africa to South America.

The Ile de Batz. Capable of laying cable for up to 40 days in a row, the ship travels the world laying fibre that forms the basis of connections between major nations and continents. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

The system will be composed of two trunks - the first one connecting South Africa to Angola and Nigeria, and the second trunk linking Angola to Brazil.

The tiny fibres can carry up to 40Gbit/s of data and are bought from a specialist fibre manufacturer. They are tested thoroughly before being loaded on to the ships in Calais and should last for up to 25 years. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

This end-to-end project will further increase connectivity in Africa, deliver additional capacity for wholesale and will also enhance service and traffic protection by providing critical cable route diversity to South America.

New submarine cable network linking the west coast of Africa to South America. The system will be composed of two trunks - the first one connecting South Africa to Angola and Nigeria, and the second trunk linking Angola to Brazil. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

“We believe that high-growth areas such as the African continent require the development of new projects,” said Lawrence Mulaudzi, managing director of eFive Telecoms.
“The planned submarine network will also provide cable route diversity to South America, making the most economical and operational sense in the current landscape.”

Philippe Dumont, head of Alcatel-Lucent’s submarine network activity. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

“Growth in African internet and mobile telephony is driving service providers’ demand for more connectivity options to ensure higher reliability, as well as increased widespread access to bandwidth. This project will further position Africa as a major hub for broadband connectivity,” said Philippe Dumont, head of Alcatel-Lucent’s submarine network activity.
“This selection also confirms Alcatel-Lucent’s end-to-end expertise in helping operators address the fast growth of data-intensive services and applications.”

Currently, Alcatel is involved in two projects to connect African nations to new fibres, with each set to run from Portugal to South Africa, with several branch connections heading inland on the way to bring other nations online with broadband for the first time ever. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

Alcatel-Lucent will be in charge of the project end-to-end including the system design, manufacturing, installation and commissioning.

Monitors for laying. A dedicated bank of monitors on the bridge helps crew members monitor the exact position the cable is being laid in, and calculates the effect of winds, currents and the boat's movement to help regulate the power the boat needs to keep the cable laying steady as the boat rocks around. Photo: Alcatel-Lucent

The system will also be maintained by Alcatel-Lucent through its Atlantic Private Maintenance Agreement (APMA) which currently covers over 100,000km of critical submarine cable infrastructure from the west coast of Africa to the Caribbean and as far north as Greenland.

About eFive Telecoms

eFive Telecoms (Pty) Ltd is a black-owned and controlled investment-oriented company that was established in 2009, to lead and facilitate strategic investment opportunities for ourselves, investors and stakeholders, intending to fill in the market need for a professional, customer-focused Telecommunications and/or Electronic, Information and Communication Technology Company.

Malusi Magasela and Lawrence Mulaudzi, managing director of eFive Telecoms. Photo: Tshepo Kekana

The company emphasizes products / services and supports delivery, Project Management in ICT Infrastructure environment and Advisory on ICT related issues all of which are undergoing robust economic transformation and providing opportunities for historically disadvantaged individuals, especially youth, women and people with disability to differentiate itself from more price-oriented technologies companies.
We are on the brink of penetrating a lucrative ICT / telecommunications market in a rapidly growing industry.
The current trend towards an increase in the number of entrepreneurs and competition amongst existing companies presents an opportunity for eFive Telecoms to penetrate this market.

About Alcatel-Lucent

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) is the trusted transformation partner of service providers, enterprises, strategic industries such as defense, energy, healthcare, transportation, and governments worldwide, providing solutions to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end-users.

A leader in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, IP and optics technologies, applications and services, Alcatel-Lucent leverages the unrivalled technical and scientific expertise of Bell Labs, one of the largest innovation powerhouses in the communications industry.

With operations in more than 130 countries and the most experienced global services organization in the industry, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with a global reach.

Alcatel-Lucent achieved revenues of Euro 15.2 billion in 2009 and is incorporated in France, with executive offices located in Paris.

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