The backers are also looking at extending the cable north along the Red Sea to Egypt and south through the Indian Ocean to South Africa.
The cable is being called Pakistan East Africa Cable Express (Peace), said Huawei Marine. The basic Pakistan-Djibouti-Kenya cable would be 6,800km long, but the two extensions would take the total length to 13,000km.
“The project will facilitate connectivity from China to Pakistan via existing terrestrial cable networks and create the shortest route from China to Europe via Africa,” said Huawei, whose backers are Tropical Science, China-ASEAN Information Harbor and the China Construction Bank.
Mao Shengjiang, COO of Huawei Marine, said: “We are pleased to commence work on this important project to ensure a timely delivery programme.”
Huawei Marine said project is targeted for completion at the end of 2019. The company said that the project will facilitate connectivity from China to Pakistan via existing terrestrial cable networks and create the shortest route from China to Europe via Africa.
It added: “This network topology substantially reduces existing network lengths by up to 50% and, when completed, will provide a cost-effective, diverse route for the escalating demand for capacity between Asia, Africa and Europe.”
Mao said: “Our customer-centric focus and commitment to quality and on-time delivery, is a hallmark of our company values. I would like to thank Tropical Science and our other partners for their trust in Huawei Marine.”
