WaveTek successfully deploys AOptix laser-radio technology in Lagos, Nigeria

AOptix, a pioneer in ultra-high capacity wireless communications, today announced that partner WaveTek has successfully completed deployment and field validation of AOptix's laser-radio technology in Lagos, Nigeria. The 7km link connected capacity from submarine fibre-optic cables to a distribution point in the city's interior, and proved the ability of laser-radio technology to provide high-bandwidth connectivity between mobile carriers in Nigeria and the rest of the world.

"Over the past several years, there has been a push to lay submarine optical cables to connect the African continent," said Michael Klayko, CEO of AOptix. "With the undersea cables largely in place, the challenge now is to pull that network capacity into Africa's population centres, and bring connectivity to underserved markets. This is a perfect job for the AOptix Intellimax because it wirelessly delivers fibre-like performance and high availability over long distances, even in harsh weather conditions and across complex terrain."

Lagos, the largest city in Africa with a population of more than 20 million, is the landing point for four major submarine fibre-optic cables - SAT-3/WASC/SAFE, ACE, GLO-1 and Main One - that connect Nigeria to Europe. Yet, not enough infrastructure exists in the region today to transport the optical bandwidth, making it difficult to bring network capacity where it's needed. The outdated microwave links widely used throughout Africa do not provide enough capacity and reliability to support the region's rapidly growing mobile data traffic.

As Nigeria looks to modernise its communications infrastructure, WaveTek is on the cutting-edge of the industry with the deployment of AOptix Intellimax laser-radio technology. Originally developed for deep space imaging and later further developed in military applications, AOptix's laser-radio technology is the core of the AOptix Intellimax family of products, giving the products the unique characteristics ideal for next-generation mobile backhaul, fibre extension and last-mile enterprise applications.

"In Nigeria, and across Africa, fibre is simply not viable in most situations - it is too costly to deploy given the challenges of the terrain," said Ken Spann, CEO of WaveTek Nigeria. "On the other hand, microwave doesn't provide the bandwidth and range needed and can't stand up to our humidity and heavy rains. The AOptix Intellimax link has weathered our rainy season, delivering 100% uptime. The technology has significant potential to bring broadband mobile connectivity to underserved populations in Nigeria and across Africa."

AOptix and WaveTek conducted the Lagos validation using an E-band trial licence granted by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and have also been working closely with the NCC to open up E-band spectrum for full use in the country. The NCC organised a stakeholders' event heralding the imminent release of the spectrum in the first half of 2015, marking an important milestone that will allow widespread deployment of AOptix Intellimax (which uses E-band for the radio portion of its laser-radio technology) across the country to bring reliable, broadband mobile connectivity to a larger portion of the Nigerian population.