Low-cost UK broadband ISP TalkTalk has apologised after customers in two rural villages outside Warrington, which are being served by their older UltraFibreOptic (UFO) based gigabit FTTP network on CityFibre’s platform, were mistakenly told that their service was due to be disconnected. Firstly, a history lesson. Back in September 2020 we reported (here) that FibreNation, […]

Once we commit to getting a project done, it gets done, no matter how hard it gets.

When a programme wraps up, everyone’s celebrating – there’s press and champagne, and it all looks rosy. You don’t see the additional grey hair that got us there! If you want to know what it’s really like, I’ll tell you.

The Exhilarating Adventures of Zeus

Zeus, our subsea cable connecting the UK to Europe, was a major part of my life for several years. From the early initiation days in 2019 through to its final splice and test in mid-2022, I was constantly worried because it was so unpredictable.

For example, consultants advised in planning that we had a five percent chance of finding an unexploded WW2 bomb along the route. We didn’t find just one, we found four! Three bombs were within British waters adding months of delay and substantial additional costs to move them out of the way of the route. The other one in Dutch waters. This was far less problematic as the Dutch navy, for national security purposes, stepped in and took care of it within days – much to my relief.

Seabed X-rays suggested we would need to examine 140 hidden objects.We actually ended up having to examine over 350 objects before we could even start laying the cable.

One thing our great oceans never are is predictable. Throw in rough weather, an international pandemic, changing permitting laws, and you start to understand just how far out of my comfort zone I was!

The Customer Need for a New Subsea Hero

One thing we could predict accurately was the demand for a new subsea cable. This was clear from the market trajectory and customer feedback. Customers wanted a super secure route across the North Sea and they wanted it as quickly as humanly possible.

Our existing North Sea cable, called Circe North, was nearing capacity and is also over 20 years old. It was entering the unknown when it came to stability and future workable life.  Zayo has always invested heavily in quality network infrastructure to be ready for future demand, so Zeus just had to be done.

Subsea Connectivity Built to Last

One thing we knew from maintaining Circe North for over 20 years is that these waters are heavily fished. Circe North had been impacted multiple times, mostly by illegal fishing. Our fiber is affected when fishermen trawl the bottom of the seabed and inadvertently pull up our cable then cut it to free up their nets and escape before the authorities can track their vessel’s movements.

This meant our main objective in planning wasn’t speed, despite the demand – we wanted to do it right. Quality, security, and sustainability were the priorities. This is why we made sure, at a significant cost, to secure an installation vessel capable of three metres burial depth.

By doing this, we uniquely achieved burying Zeus over two metres where sand waves occur and in many areas achieving two and a half to three metres in depth.

This burial depth is vitally important as the sand on the seabed changes in depth typically by up to two metres in constant tides, this is known as sand waves. This means that only a cable buried over two metres remains covered and safe from the dreaded fishing nets.

We know from our experience in maintaining our Circe North route that anything buried at a depth of less than two metres will become exposed at times.

Even at a burial depth of over three metres, we were still thinking about all of the potential threats. For example, what if an anchor landed on Zeus, potentially causing strike damage? This is why we opted for a double-armoured cable with increased crush resiliency, meaning an anchor bounces off Zeus without impact.

Burying over two metres also has a positive environmental impact, allowing the seabed to reform naturally over the top comprehensively.

An Optimal User Experience Begins Below Sea Level

Most people don’t think about the Internet being under the sea – but they’ll certainly notice if their service is down or the user experience is not what it usually is. If a subsea cable is cut, then everything needs re-routing across longer routes, meaning higher latency and a slower, interrupted and sub-optimal user experience.

Zeus is monitored 24/7 from our UK-based NOC, meaning we see issues or degradation immediately. However, we don’t expect this to ever be an issue for this new cable. In addition, technology is advancing so fast and Zeus is currently being considered by several partners for a super cool advancement using vibrations to monitor illegal fishing and people trafficking.

This type of tech is used on other subsea cables to help predict natural disasters like tsunamis, giving response teams more time to act and prevent a catastrophe. It can also be used by marine biologists to listen to whale songs which they use to ascertain their gender and species.

Problem-solving skills are essential to my team and we pride ourselves on getting the job done.

I had a team of 20 people working on Zeus, plus expert industry consultants. Zeus came in significantly over budget and stretched us in many ways, but we’re all thrilled with the achievement. In my opinion, Zeus is the most secure subsea cable in the world.

If you want to learn more about Zayo and chat with the team, you can join them at this year’s Submarine Networks EMEA event taking place at the end of this month! Get your ticket today

Also in the news:
Wind Tre carves out network assets, sells majority stake to EQT
Rakuten Mobile and KDDI strike roaming agreement
CMA gives Viasat the thumbs up to acquire Inmarsat

Network operator Freedom Fibre, which is supported by UK broadband ISP TalkTalk and aims to cover over 2 million premises in England and Wales with their Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network, has re-opened their “Freedom Fund” and is now offering more money to help community projects (£500 per scheme). Just to recap, the operator initially set aside […]

Ofcom’s Spring 2023 report into UK fixed line broadband and mobile coverage has found that “full fibre” (FTTP) now reaches 48% of the UK (up from 42% in Sept 2022), while 73% are within reach of a gigabit-capable network (up from 70%) and 73-82% of premises can get outdoor 5G cover from at least one […]

The UK division of Norwegian renewable energy generator firm, Statkraft, has commissioned mapping firm FarrPoint to conduct a study of their proposed Loch Liath wind farm in Scotland, near Loch Ness. The work could help to facilitate the rollout of faster broadband into remote rural communities in the surrounding area. At present the edges of […]

Contributed Article 

by center3

Connecting continents: The 2Africa subsea cable

The world is becoming more interconnected than ever before. And this is being made possible through the deployment of subsea cables networks, which provide reliable connectivity and internet services across continents. One such project that is set to make a huge impact is the 2Africa submarine cable.

Breaking records: The world’s longest subsea cable

With over 45,000 km of length, the 2Africa subsea cable is the longest ever deployed in the world. It is expected to connect 33 countries by the completion of the project in 2024, spanning across three continents: Africa, Asia, and Europe. The 2Africa cable will deliver more than the total combined capacity of all subsea cables serving Africa today with a design capacity of up to 180Tbps.

Beyond connectivity: The potential impact of the 2Africa subsea cable

The 2Africa subsea cable is not just about providing faster internet speeds or improving connectivity. It has the potential to bring about a surge in information exchange, digital business development and overall economic growth for all the countries in connects to.

Promoting economic growth: The impact of the 2Africa subsea cable in Saudi Arabia

The cable is expected to make a total of four landings in Saudi Arabia, including Jeddah, Yanbu, Duba, and Al Khobar. The 2Africa submarine cable has already completed landings in Jeddah and Yanbu, with Duba set to follow later this year. The 2Africa cable is expected to act as a catalyst for change in the broadband market and benefiting individuals and businesses alike.

Expanding horizons: The 2Africa Pearls cable extensions

The 2Africa cable is also being extended into the Arabian Gulf region through “2Africa Pearls” cable extensions. These extensions will add landings in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Oman, the UAE, Pakistan, and India, along with the East Coast of Saudi Arabia. Thus, it will further enhance the future of connectivity in the Middle-East region.

The role of subsea cables in driving economic growth: The case of the 2Africa subsea cable

As the world becomes more interconnected, the deployment of subsea cables like the 2Africa subsea cable will result in a huge development in the region. With its record-breaking length and ability to connect multiple continents, the 2Africa subsea cable is set to be a game-changer in the world of connectivity and information exchange.

Innovating for the future: The success of the 2Africa subsea cable project

In conclusion, the 2Africa subsea cable project is a testament to what can be achieved through collaboration and innovation. Its success will not only benefit the economies it connects but will also have a positive impact on the lives of individuals and businesses. The future of connectivity looks bright, and the 2Africa subsea cable is leading the way.

Want to keep up to date with all of the latest telecoms news from the submarine cable industry? Join the cable operators in discussion at this year’s live Submarine Networks EMEA event!

Also in the news:
Wind Tre carves out network assets, sells majority stake to EQT
Rakuten Mobile and KDDI strike roaming agreement
CMA gives Viasat the thumbs up to acquire Inmarsat

Interviews

At this year’s Connected North conference, we caught up with Willy Pelhate, ACOME Group’s UK marketing manager, to discuss how the company is helping the UK fulfil its full fibre and Net Zero ambitions

The UK is pursuing two very big challenges with an extremely tight deadline: one is digital; the other is environmental.

The first is to bring gigabit-enabled broadband to 85% of UK premises by the end of 2025, and to all by 2030. The second is to produce Net Zero greenhouse emissions by 2050.

To reach these goals, the deployment of fibre networks will be essential. However, in rural areas it can be hard to rely existing and or reusable underground civil engineering. Thus, with three-times less CAPEX and a 75% faster execution speed, deploying in the air can become the most viable solution. But this also comes with requirements related to the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) and legal constraints.

In this context, bringing gigabit to rural areas and connecting the hard-to-reach is like squaring the circle, explained Pelhate.

In this interview, you will hear how and why ACOME and its breakthrough technology, Nanomodule® (already PIA approved in the United Kingdom) can become your best allies to build viable and sustainable fibre-to-the-premise networks.

Benefits from ACOME Nanomodule®-based ultra-lightweight cables includes among others:

Total Cost of Ownership reduced by more than a third
Increased long-term reliability
Savings on greenhosue gas emissions of up to one ton of CO2 equivalent every two miles

Click here to learn more about how ACOME’s Nanomodule technology is fighting back against fibre deployment costs.

You can watch the full interview from the link below

Want to learn more about ACOME and the creation of full fibre Britain? Join ACOME and the UK’s telecoms ecosystem at Connected Britain, the UK’s largest digital economy event 

Also in the news:
Wind Tre carves out network assets, sells majority stake to EQT
Rakuten Mobile and KDDI strike roaming agreement
CMA gives Viasat the thumbs up to acquire Inmarsat

Space firm OneWeb, which is part-owned by the UK government, has announced that the final batch of 15 first generation (GEN1) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) based ultrafast (100Mbps+) and low-latency (sub-100ms) broadband satellites – plus a single GEN2 prototype “Joey-Sat” – are to be launched on a SpaceX Falcon9 rocket today. The company has so […]

Customers of Sky UK’s sibling NOW Broadband (NOW TV) sub-brand, which in March 2023 reportedly said that it would keep their broadband and phone prices frozen (here), has now begun notifying customers of an imminent price hike that will be introduced from 5th July 2023 – hiking monthly prices by an extra £3.50. The good […]

Abingdon-based rural ISP Gigaclear, which has already built their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to cover 380,000 premises, have announced that the operator’s £10m network expansion in Surrey (England) is now starting to reach the villages of Gomshall and Westcott, with Wonersh to follow in 2024. The latest expansion will benefit more than 2,400 homes across […]