Glo-1 Is Ready For Launch

West African submarine fibre-optic cable system Glo-1, which was developed by Nigerian telecoms operator Globacom and French vendor Alcatel-Lucent, is ready for commissioning, Nigerian newspaper THISDAY reports. The 9,800km cable stretches from the UK across West Africa and has landing points in Nigeria, London and Lisbon, connecting 17 countries to the rest of the world.

End-to-end testing of Glo-1, conducted in London and Lagos, has been successful, and according to Globacom's COO Mohamed Jameel, the commissioning process will begin by mid-July. ‘Glo-1 will provide the needed opportunity for West African countries and indeed Africa to leap forward economically through an excellent communication network and cost effective voice, data, video and e-commerce services across Africa, Europe and rest of the world,’ a statement from Globacom announced.

Globacom contracted Alca-Lu to install the cable system in 2005, in order fill the void of international connectivity in the region. The USD250 million cable landed in Lagos in September 2009 and Accra in Ghana the following month (increasing fibre-optic capacity in that country from 120Gbps to 640Gbps). The cable has ultimate capacity of 2.5Tbps and is expected to provide faster, more reliable internet services at a lower cost.