New broadband cable planned for SA
2011-04-15 06:52
Cape Town - Yet another undersea cable, the biggest to date, could bring faster broadband to SA.
On Thursday, the Brics countries expressed support for the South Atlantic Express (Saex) Cable.
This 12.8 terabit cable is more than double the size of the Wacs cable.
Saex will link SA with Brazil through Angola. What makes this cable different, apart from its size, is that it offers the shortest route to the US today, which will increase the speed of data transmission.
Undersea cables currently link SA with the US through Europe.
The Main One cable which has connected West Africa is due to reach Cape Town soon.
"Phase 2 hasn't commenced yet - there are financing and other issues, so I can't give you an exact date," Main One's Adekoyejo Abiola told News24 from Nigeria.
When the cable does eventually reach SA, it will exponentially increase broadband capacity in the country, but many users will look to the government to legislate competition for the "last mile" connection into homes.
"The connection can bring only good things, like increasing our educational facilities. It gives you a chance to grow to your potential," said Abiola.
The expected cost of the Saex cable is R3bn.
