News : : Alcatel-Lucent wins Teams undersea cable

Alcatel-Lucent wins Teams undersea cable contract in Kenya
Published: Thursday 11 October 2007 | 12:48:00 PM

Alcatel-Lucent has won a USD 82 million tender to construct a submarine fibre-optic cable linking Kenya and the UAE. Kenyan government Information Permanent Secretary Bitange Ndemo said the firm beat Tyco Telecommunication, Fujistu, NEC and Huawei Technologies for the contract to build the East Africa Marine system (TEAMs) undersea cable. Ndemo said assessment of the bids was based on technical capability, pricing and proposed time frame for completion of the project. The project is expected to take 16 months to complete and ownership will be 40 percent government, 15 percent UAE operator Etisalat and 45 percent for local private investors and regional countries. Ndemo said Ethiopia, Southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo have applied for use of the cable. The undersea cable is expected to cut internet costs in east African countries by up to a third over five years and stimulate investment in the region.