Nextgen Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a USD 120 million 50/50 joint venture with Australian network provider, Vocus, to construct and operate a submarine cable between Perth and Singapore.
The 4,600km Australia Singapore Cable (ASC) would directly connect Australia to Singapore via Indonesia, providing the first 100Gbit/s high-speed connection from Western Australia to South-East Asia, the company said.
Nextgen CEO David Yuile said Vocus was an ideal partner in the project because the company already had capacity on several existing international cables, including SEA-ME-WE-3.
“Our new cable will provide a high-speed, low latency path to Singapore and Jakarta, both key growth markets and IT centres. It will also be very beneficial for the WA economy, particularly the resource sector, providing direct connectivity to the Asia Pacific region,” he said.
“In a broader context, the project is important nationally as it will add value to available telecommunications infrastructure and provide subsea cable diversity for governments and businesses around the country.”
The Perth to Singapore Cable project is scheduled to begin construction in the first quarter of 2016, with completion within 18 months.
The deal remains subject to due diligence and regulatory approval and will be formalised in coming months, Nextgen added.
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