Huawei Marine Gives UK-South Africa Subsea Cable A 100Gbps Upgrade

Connections between the UK and Africa have been boosted by a 100G upgrade to the West Africa Cable System (WACS), the largest undersea cable between Europe and Southern Africa.

Huawei Marine, a joint venture between Huawei and Global Marines Systems, used its technology to upgrade the 11,450km section between South Africa and Portugal, creating one of the largest 100G submarine links in the world. The company also upgraded another section from Portugal to the UK.

WACS was commissioned in 2012 and connects South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Cape Verde, Spain (Canary Islands), Portugal and the United Kingdom. In total it extends 14,530 long, landing in the UK in Somerset.

WACS subsea cable upgrade

“Our aim is to provide an advanced, stable and seamless communications network which contributes to the social and economic development of the African region,” said Vishen Maharaj, Chairperson of the WACS consortium’s Management Committee. “We are constantly working to improve the capabilities of the WACS network while maintaining an economically viable and flexible service for customers.

Huawei Marine says its technology can guarantee the compatibility between 100Gbps and 10Gbps channels to maximise the available spectrum of the cable, which is split across 14 countries and its 18 operator investors.

“With our advanced technology, Huawei Marine has achieved 100G ultra-long haul transmission and offered the WACS consortium a cost-effective solution that substantially increases and enhances network connectivity, operational efficiency and the end-user experience in these growth regions,” added Mike Constable, CEO of Huawei Marine Networks.

WACS is just one of a number of cable systems located off the west coast of Africa, including ACE, which will eventually connect 23 countries between France and South Africa.

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