Telecom Egypt, the first integrated telecommunications operator in Egypt and one of the largest subsea cable operators in the region, has joined forces with NaiTel, a licensed telecommunications service provider in Jordan, and the telecom arm of Aqaba Digital Hub to construct Coral Bridge, a new, long-awaited subsea cable system connecting Egypt and Jordan.
The signing of a Joint Build Agreement between Telecom Egypt and NaiTel was completed in the presence of H.E. Dr. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology of Egypt and H.E. Amjad Adaileh, Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to Egypt.
Fulfilling Regional and International Demands
Coral Bridge system will cross the Gulf of Aqaba, creating a point-to-point well-established infrastructure between Taba on the Egyptian side and Aqaba on the Jordanian side. With no repeaters and a high-fiber count, the system will serve as a key project, maximizing the geo advantages of the region to cater for the international community needs and act as a meeting point for the traffic flowing between East and West.
The Coral Bridge system is the first subsea system to be laid in the Gulf of Aqaba since 1997. It will play an important role in fulfilling 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. Through this connection, the new cable system will serve the Jordanian market as well as neighboring countries by providing innovative and essential end-to-end solutions from Aqaba to Europe by capitalizing on Telecom Egypt’s diversified subsea infrastructure footprint and resilient crossing network.
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H.E. Dr. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology of Egypt, stated, “This project comes as a continuation of the efforts made to enhance Egypt’s capabilities in the field of international digital infrastructure in light of the implementation of an integrated strategy aimed at strengthening Egypt’s position as a regional data corridor and maximizing the benefit of Egypt’s unique geographical location, which makes it a distinguished meeting point in the field of subsea cable networks globally.”
Mohamed Nasr Eldin, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at 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 neighboring countries, capitalizing 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.”
Eyad Abu Khorma, Founder and CEO at 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. This collaboration aims to deliver a comprehensive end-to-end solution, connecting Jordan seamlessly to Europe.”
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