Reliance Jio announced on Monday that it is building the world’s largest undersea cable system. The system will help to address the rising data demand. India is at the centre of this project with global partners and submarine cable supplier Subcom.
In a statement, Reliance Jio President Mathew Oommen said, “To address the demands of Streaming Video, Remote Workforce, 5G, IoT, and beyond, Jio is taking a leadership role in the creation of the first of its kind, India-centric IAX and IEX subsea networks.“
The Project
With the system, Jio wants to install two undersea cable lines. One will connect India to Asia Pacific markets via Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, and the other to Italy, the Middle East, and North Africa.
The India-Asia-Xpress (IAX) system will connect India to Singapore and beyond on the east coast, while the India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) system would connect India to the Middle East and Europe on the west coast. These high-capacity, high-speed systems will stretch 16,000 kilometers and deliver more than 200 Tbps of capacity.
Presently, the IAX cable system connects India to Asia Pacific markets via Mumbai and Chennai, as well as Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. The IEX cable system will connect India to Italy, including a stop in Savona, as well as further stops in the Middle East and North Africa. The Reliance Jio Global Fiber Network is also connected to these two systems. This network connects to both the east and west coasts of the United States.
Significance of the Project
Subsea connectivity is one of the challenges in serving India’s data requirement. India is one of the world’s greatest data and digital service consumers.
As a result, these two technologies will significantly aid and increase the quality of digital and cloud services in the country. According to Jio, the IAX and IEX would improve the ability of consumer and enterprise customers to access content and cloud services in and out of India.
The systems will go live in 2023-24.
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