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Undersea cables still adrift

Paul Vecchiatto
By Paul Vecchiatto, ITWeb Cape Town correspondent
Cape Town, 11 Mar 2009

Discussions surrounding two undersea cable systems, one mostly privately sponsored, and the other a key Department of Communications (DOC) project, appear to be ongoing, as no conclusion has been reached on the future of either.

Yesterday, trade and industry minister Mandisi Mpahlwa said at a media briefing that progress has been made in the construction of submarine cables.

Speaking on behalf of the economic cluster of ministries, which includes the DOC, Mpahlwa said the West African Cable System Consortium (WACS) is due to conclude its construction and maintenance agreement. He added that, in respect of the Uhurunet submarine cable, the Baharicom shareholding structure for the cabling will be concluded in the near future. The cable is expected to be in service during the last quarter of 2010.

WACS plans to lay a 3.9Tb cable along the West African coast to Europe. Its members consist of Telkom, Neotel, Vodacom, MTN and government's Broadband Infraco. The latter will also represent Uhurunet/Baharicom.

Uhurunet is a DOC-driven project that ultimately aims to encircle the entire continent with an undersea cable, to be called Baharicom. It will also have a terrestrial leg to be called Umojanet. This project has been aligned with Nepad, the economic policy for Africa's regeneration that was a hallmark of former president Thabo Mbeki's foreign policy.

These systems are not connected with the ongoing Seacom and Eassy (East African Submarine Cable System) projects that are laying East Coast cables. Seacom is due to be operational by June, and Eassy should be operating in the first quarter of 2010.

Left hanging

No formal replies to ITWeb's questions have been received from the DOC and one senior government official concedes yesterday's announcement says “...nothing significant”.

Another official insists Uhurunet will continue and that government remains committed to it, even though the structure, budgets and appointment of management are far from done.

“It is part of our Nepad commitments and it is going ahead,” the official says.

Similarly, confusion surrounds the exact status of WACS. Its chairman, Andrew Mthembu, says: “All I can tell you is that the signature of the C&MA [construction and maintenance agreement] will certainly occur in the next few weeks. The parties are keeping their cards very close to their chests until the signature has occurred. They have requested that all parties keep the programme confidential for now.”

An industry source says speculation is that Uhurunet will not go ahead, while the WACS system almost certainly will.

“WACS is very important and that is why it is taking some time to put it all together,” the source says.

However, another source says the WACS shareholders are becoming impatient with the drawn out negotiations that are becoming increasingly complicated with government's involvement.

“Only those who definitely have cables, namely Seacom and, possibly Eassy, will benefit,” the source says.

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