Telstra awards Alcatel-Lucent 9,000 km submarine network contract to support IP network transformation strategy

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) has signed a turnkey contract with Telstra, Australia’s leading telecommunication and information services company, to lay a new submarine cable network directly linking Sydney to Hawaii. The new submarine network will serve as an added-value vehicle to support Telstra’s IP network transformation strategy and infrastructure expansion.

Greatly increasing international and regional connectivity, the Sydney-Hawaii network will span nearly 9,000 km and ease the delivery of high-quality, innovative services to Telstra’s over 5 million customers. With completion scheduled in the second half of 2008, the Sydney-Hawaii submarine network will deliver a capacity of 1.28 Tbit/s.

Businesses and consumers will benefit from enhanced capacity and reliability to enjoy innovative services such as telecommuting, video conferencing and mobile video applications. As a result, Telstra will be able to further expand its end-to-end offering that ranges from broadband, IP, mobile and intelligent network services, to voice and data network hubs, call centers and advanced multimedia as well as e-commerce applications.

“The Sydney-Hawaii submarine network will enable us to offer improved international connectivity and offer new, high-speed services such as fixed and mobile IP-based services,” stated Greg Winn, Chief Operations Officer at Telstra. “Alcatel-Lucent is a valuable partner offering a comprehensive product and service portfolio to support our seamless and cost-effective network transformation.”

“Today, operators have to manage their networks by minimizing operational costs, while guaranteeing performance continuity at the highest level possible,” said Jean Godeluck, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s submarine network activity. “Our solutions enable the introduction of new services and applications smoothly to help our customers strengthen end-user satisfaction and retention, as well as achieve new revenue streams.”

The Alcatel-Lucent submarine solution will be based on its 1620 Light Manager next-generation DWDM submarine platform, and will also include cable and submarine repeaters, providing direct connectivity to landing stations. A comprehensive suite of professional services, including permitting and project management, engineering, marine operation, and installation testing and commissioning, is part of this turnkey project.

This new project further strengthens the long-lasting and successful cooperation between Alcatel-Lucent and Telstra for undersea projects, dating back to the early ‘90s. In particular, Alcatel-Lucent has successfully installed several submarine systems for Telstra, such as the Pac Rim and Tasman projects.




More about the Alcatel-Lucent and Telstra cooperation
Alcatel-Lucent deployed Telstra’s first Bass Strait optic fiber cable, linking Sandy Point (Victoria) and Boat Harbour (Tasmania), to provide a highly reliable transmission link between Tasmania and the mainland. Other links where subsequently deployed, one of them connecting Adelaide to Darwin over 3,100km to meet Australia’s expanded voice, data and Internet traffic demands. Most recently, Alcatel-Lucent deployed the Bass Strait 2 submarine link to support Telstra in meeting Tasmania’s growing demand for advanced telecommunications services while enhancing the overall capacity and service reliability of its existing infrastructure.