OREANDA-NEWS. April 7, 2011. NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) today announced that it signed a contract with Dhiraagu (Dhivehi Raajjeyge Gulhun Private Limited; Headquarters: Male, Maldives; Chief Executive: Ismail Rasheed), the largest telecom carrier in the Maldives for a domestic optical submarine cable system connecting eight islands in the Maldives. NEC will provide a comprehensive set of equipment and services including commissioning and integration on a full turnkey basis.

The contract is for the construction of a non-repeater submarine cable system connecting eight islands in the Maldives, including Kulhuduffushi, Eydhafushi, Hulhumale, Dhangethi, Laamu Gan, Gadhdhoo, Fuahmulak and Hithadhoo. The total length of the cable will be approximately 1,017km with an initial transmission capacity of 20Gbps.

The Maldives, consisting of over 1,200 islands, is one of the world’s most well known resorts and diving spots. Currently, the country relies mostly on satellite and microwave technologies for domestic telecommunications. In order to improve international and domestic network services, Dhiraagu is gradually converting its resources to submarine cables.

NEC successfully completed the country’s first submarine cable system in January 2007, linking the Maldives to the rest of the world through Sri Lanka, and a domestic system connecting five islands in the Maldives. The new submarine cable will connect to these existing cables, which will dramatically enhance the reach of domestic and international telecommunications for the Maldives.

"In addition to our participation in the first submarine cable deployment in the Maldives, NEC is honored to contribute to the construction of this new cable system," said Osamu Harada, General Manager, Submarine Network Division, NEC Corporation. "NEC believes this is a reflection of our comprehensive project implementation capability and highly advanced DWDM technologies for broadband telecommunication, proven by our past submarine cable projects."

Looking forward, NEC will continue to aim to win additional projects for new construction of submarine cable systems and capacity upgrades.