TEAMS moves ahead.

04 Dec, 2007

Kenya is pushing ahead with its own undersea fibre optic cable project, known as The East African Marine Systems (TEAMS), connecting Mombasa and Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates.

The tender for the $110 million cable has been awarded to Alcatel-Lucent and construction should be complete by the second quarter of 2009. The facility is a joint venture between the Kenyan government, which will have a 45 per cent shareholding, and the Dubai-based telecommunications company Etisalat, which will own 15 per cent. The remainder will go to a combination of regional telecommunications companies and internet service providers (ISPs) and fund managers.

Kenya decided to launch its own submarine cable project in 2006 after EASSy was held up by controversy over ownership and management.