Since going live in July 2010, capacity sales on EASSy, the 10,000km high speed fibre-optic cable connecting southern and eastern Africa, have outstripped initial forecasts. As a result, WIOCC, the largest shareholder in the cable, has announced that the system will be upgraded in 2011, to more than double its current capacity. The increase in its lit capacity will utilise 40Gbps wavelength technology. WIOCC CEO Chris Wood said he expects sales will continue to forge ahead next year, with significant growth from the key international financial and commercial centres. ‘EASSy has been instrumental in driving down international bandwidth costs in sub-Saharan Africa by more than 50%, and has been quick to increase its original design capacity to an impressive 3.84Tbps, making it the largest African submarine system in operation,’ he explained.
With landing points in every coastal country from South Africa to Sudan, as well as landings in Madagascar and the Comores, EASSy provides the most extensive reach on the East African coast and delivers onward global connectivity through multiple interconnect points with other fibre-optic systems. This connectivity is extended inland from the coast via WIOCC shareholders’ domestic fibre-optic networks and cross-border connections, with plans to serve 20+ countries. Through multiple interconnect points, WIOCC-EASSy also provides onward global connectivity with other fibre-optic systems and financial centres around the world.