Alcatel-Lucent completes PCCS undersea cable system to boost ultra-broadband access in the Caribbean, Central and South America

Paris, France, August 03, 2015

Alcatel-Lucent Submarine Networks (ASN), the undersea cables subsidiary of Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU), has completed the commissioning of the Pacific Caribbean Cable System (PCCS), a 6000km undersea cable linking Florida, in the United States, to Ecuador and which has now entered into commercial service.

PCCS is owned by a group of telecommunications operators consisting of Cable & Wireless Communications, Setar, Telconet, Telefónica Global Solutions and United Telecommunication Services (UTS).

With an efficient multi-channel 100 gigabits-per-second (Gbit/s) technology and an ultimate design capacity of 80 terabits-per-second (Tbit/s), the PCCS system dramatically boosts connectivity and substantially increases the availability of broadband services by strengthening digital links as demand grows rapidly throughout the Caribbean, Central and South America for online content such as tourism related services, sports coverage and digital TV.

In addition to Florida and Ecuador, the PCCS system connects the islands of Tortola, Puerto Rico, Aruba and Curacao, as well as Cartagena in Colombia, and Maria Chiquita and Balboa in Panama. It also increases communications reliability and helps reduce the risk of communications disruption by providing cable route diversity and alternative bandwidth access to existing cables in the region.

Carlos Pazmino, Chairman of the PCCS General Committee, said: “The commercial service of the PCCS system is a significant milestone in the evolution of the communications infrastructure in the CALA region. Delivering faster speeds and higher capacity than currently available, PCCS is also a critical leverage for people to benefit from sustainable social and economic growth.”

Philippe Dumont, President of Alcatel-Lucent Submarine Networks said: “We are pleased to have supported the PCCS operators in delivering this key connectivity and bandwidth artery in the Caribbean, Central and South America. This project highlights ASN’s capability as a trusted partner in undersea communications to address the exponential growth in data traffic driven by broadband applications. It also underlines our innovation, unique end-to-end expertise and turnkey execution ability.”