China Telecommunications Corporation, China Mobile Limited, and China United Network Communications Group Co Limited are being backed by the government to build a subsea OFC internet network, EMA, to connect Europe, the Middle East, and Asia at an investment of USD 500 million.
April 06, 2023
According to a Reuters report, China is planning to back its state-owned firms, China Telecommunications Corporation (China Telecom), China Mobile Limited, and China United Network Communications Group Co Limited (China Unicom), to invest USD 500 million in the development of subsea OFC internet network to connect Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The network is important to China’s international strategy.
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Once developed, the Europe-Middle East-Asia (EMA) network will connect Hong Kong to China’s Hainan province, and move forward to Singapore, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and France, becoming the world’s most advanced and far-reaching subsea OFC networks. HMN Technologies Co Limited, majorly owned by Hengtong Optic-Electric Co Limited, will manufacture and lay the cable network.
The trio will own the major stakes in the network alongside foreign partners, with whom contract-based communication is ongoing. The MoUs with Orange SA (France), Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited, Telecom Egypt, and Zain Saudi Arabia have already been signed.
Subsea cables are responsible for over 95 percent of international internet traffic. The scale of such networks is huge and hence takes at least three years, from conception to delivery. If the contracts get finalized by the end of 2023, then the EMA network shall become active by the end of 2025.
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The EMA project will run parallel to the US-backed Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe-6 (SeaMeWe-6) project. The SeaMeWe-6 project, being handled by SubCom LLC, will travel through over a dozen countries to connect including Singapore, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and France.
