Du completes first phase of optical transport network expansion

United Arab Emirates telecoms operator Du has in cooperation with Huawei completed the first phase of its optical transport network (OTN) expansion project, connecting Abu Dhabi, Al Silla and Al Ain with Dubai, TradeArabia News Service reports. The company has now embarked on the second phase of the project, which will connect Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Al Fujairah and the east coast. Du has invested over USD65 million in the programme, which is scheduled for completion by mid-2012. Ultimately the network will stretch from Abu Dhabi to Dubai and the northern emirates, before reaching Du’s submarine cable landing station in Fujairah, adding an additional high bandwidth gateway towards Asia, Africa and Europe through the Europe India Gateway (EIG) cable system. ‘Optical transport network along with our own backbone infrastructure using the latest in fibre-optic cables will enhance the capacity of the backbone and to the end users, and also provide enhanced network coverage to 2G and 3G mobile users,’ said Hatem Bamatraf, Du’s senior vice president of network development, adding: ‘Moreover, it will act as a core network to connect the UAE to other nearby countries through global and submarine cables … This in turn acts as a stepping stone towards our preparations to launch our fixed line service nationwide.’