Facebook Inc and some of the world\u2019s largest telecom carriers including China Mobile Ltd are joining forces to build a giant sub-sea cable to help bring more reliable and faster internet across Africa.<\/p>\n
The cost of the project will be just under $1 billion, according to three people familiar with the project, who asking not to be identified as the budget hasn\u2019t been made public.<\/p>\n
The 37,000-kilometer (23,000 miles) long cable – dubbed 2Africa – will connect Europe to the Middle East and 16 African countries, according to a statement on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The undersea cable sector is experiencing a resurgence. During the 1990s dot-com boom, phone companies spent more than $20 billion laying fiber-optic lines under the oceans.<\/p>\n
Now tech giants, led by Facebook and Alphabet Inc\u2019s Google, are behind about 80% of the recent investment in transatlantic cable, driven by demand for fast-data transfers used for streaming movies to social messaging.<\/p>\n
Facebook has long tried to lead the race to improve connectivity in Africa in a bid to take advantage of a young population, greater connectivity and the increasing availability and affordability of smartphones. The US social-media giant attempted to launch a satellite in 2016 to beam signal around the continent, but the SpaceX rocket carrying the technology blew up on the launchpad.<\/p>\n
Google announced its own sub-sea cable connecting Europe to Africa last year, using a route down the west coast.<\/p>\n
2Africa is expected to come into operation by 2024 and will deliver more than the combined capacity of all sub-sea cables serving Africa, according to the statement.<\/p>\n
The announcement comes after internet users across more than a dozen sub-Saharan African nations experienced slow service in January after two undersea cables were damaged.<\/p>\n
Facebook has partnered on the new cable with two of Africa\u2019s biggest wireless carriers, Johannesburg-based MTN Group Ltd and Telecom Egypt Co. The UK\u2019s Vodafone Group Plc and Paris-based Orange SA, which both have a significant presence on the continent, are also involved.<\/p>\n
Nokia Oyj\u2019s Alcatel Submarine Networks has been appointed to build the cable.<\/p>\n
The 2Africa cable will be one of the longest in the world, trailing Sea-Me-We 3, which is 39,000 kilometers long and connects 33 countries, according to Submarine Cable Networks.<\/p>\n
2Africa cable map<\/strong><\/p>\n
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