Tata and five Middle East telcos sign pact to build TGN-Gulf cable

India’s Tata Communications has signed a strategic partner agreement with Middle Eastern telecoms operators in five countries to build a new international submarine cable named the TGN-Gulf Cable System connecting the Gulf region directly to India and to the rest of the world. The five companies are Qatar Telecom, Oman’s Nawras, UAE-based Etisalat, Bahrain-based consortium Bahraini Internet Exchange and Saudi Arabia’s Mobily. The new regional cable will connect to the Tata Global Network (TGN). The respective local partners will be the exclusive cable landing station operators in their countries, whilst according to a Tata press release, relationships with each telco will be further developed to provide an extended portfolio of value added services for local and global enterprise customers.