Bahrain Internet Exchange (BIX) said that it intends to enter an agreement Tata Communications, a leading telecom services provider in India, on the development of a new regional high-bandwidth subsea fibre optic cable.

The cable will link Bahrain and other Gulf countries to India and the rest of the world via Tata's Global Network (TGN), said a report in our sister publication, the Gulf Daily News.

Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Shaikh Ahmed bin Ateyatala Al Khalifa launched a major initiative to enhance the national and international telecommunications infrastructure by signing an interim agreement with Tata Communications earlier this year.

This reflected Bahrain's interest in participation of a new submarine cable system to improve international connection and bandwidth whilst also reducing costs substantially.

'This initiative is only one of the many steps that the government is undertaking to ensure that Bahrain opens its doors to international network providers,' Shaikh Ahmed said.

'The National Economic Strategy for Bahrain aims towards providing the country with sustainable, diversified and competitive business environment and it is a strategic imperative that we consider the huge international and national bandwidth requirements that will yield long-term economic benefits for the kingdom.'

BIX has been providing services to the Internet service providers since 2005, with objectives of ensuring high speed at low costs.

BIX executive director Mohamed Al Thawadi said this new submarine cable system represents a significant telecommunications infrastructure investment for BIX and will cater for the high-speed and broadband international connectivity requirements for enterprises based in Bahrain.

It allows for the fast and cost effective provisioning of capacity from the kingdom to the world's major business hubs and city centres.'

BIX will be able to expand its international footprint and service portfolio to the world's business hubs in US, Europe, India and Asia though a diversified portfolio of wholesale, enterprise (Ethernet and VPN), and value-added services such as global hosting, managed services, content distribution and telepresence.

'The benefits of working with Tata Communications as its telecom partner include the ability to utilise the company's rich experience of operating the world's largest global submarine networks of over 200,000km' said Al Thawadi. – TradeArabia News Service