Telecom Egypt has announced signing a joint build agreement with NaiTel, a telecommunications service provider in Jordan, and the telecom arm of Aqaba Digital Hub, to build 'Coral Bridge', a new, long-awaited subsea cable system connecting Egypt and Jordan. The agreement was signed by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Telecom Egypt and the Founder and CEO at NaiTel in the presence of the Minister of Communications and Information Technology of Egypt and the Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to Egypt.
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The Coral Bridge System
The Coral Bridge system will cross the Gulf of Aqaba, creating a point-to-point infrastructure between Taba on the Egyptian side and Aqaba on the Jordanian side. The partners said that with no repeaters and a high-fiber count, the system will maximise the geographical advantages of the region to cater to the international community's needs and act as a meeting point for the traffic flowing between East and West.
The "Coral Bridge" subsea cable is the first subsea cable linking the two countries to be constructed in about a quarter of a century and is expected to fulfil regional and international demands by connecting two significant locations in the Middle East and aggregating the traffic flow being hosted in a fully neutral facility–the Aqaba Digital Hub.
Regional Impact
As the first subsea system to be laid in the Gulf of Aqaba since 1997, the Coral Bridge system will serve the Jordanian market as well as neighbouring countries by providing essential end-to-end solutions from Aqaba to Europe by capitalising on Telecom Egypt's subsea infrastructure footprint and resilient crossing network.
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The official release noted that building the new "Coral Bridge" subsea cable between Egypt and Jordan enhances the efforts made to consolidate bilateral relations between the two countries in the field of communications and information technology.
Telecom Egypt commented, "We chose the name 'Coral Bridge' after the distinctive flora of the coral reefs in the Gulf of Aqaba. The cable is a key pillar in our strategy to expand the scope of our international footprint in neighbouring countries, capitalising on Jordan's strategic location and NaiTel's extensive infrastructure in the Kingdom."
"The new infrastructure between Taba and Aqaba will constitute an important crossing point for international traffic between Asia, Africa, and Europe, in addition to a new point of presence in Taba, in the Sinai Peninsula, where multiple subsea cables are planned to land."
"International traffic extends to the Mediterranean Sea via several protected terrestrial crossing routes in Egypt, and then connects to any of the subsea cables extending to Asia, Africa, and Europe, providing our partners with a competitive advantage for their international communications networks," added Telecom Egypt.
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NaiTel commented, "Aqaba Digital Hub is poised to emerge as a neutral hub, leveraging its strategic location as a crossroad between Europe, Asia, and Africa. The new cable with Telecom Egypt will enhance Aqaba Digital Hub's diverse footprint and resilient crossing network."
