MANILA - Converge Information and Communications Technology Inc said Wednesday it has signed a binding term sheet with Keppel T&T to take capacity from one fiber pair on the Bifrost Cable System connecting Singapore to the west coast of North America.
Converge and Keppel T&T parent Keppel Midgard Holdings Pte Ltd will also "jointly develop" a Bifrost Cable System branch that will land in Davao, the fiber broadband operator told the stock exchange.
Converge said it would invest over $100 million (P5 billion) for the entire project. The investment will enable Converge to "activate at will" up to 15 Tbps of capacity, its CEO Dennis Anthony Uy said.
“This is an important milestone not just for Converge but also for the Philippines as we expect to experience faster internet speeds and greater resiliency within our fast-growing fibre network with the completion of this project," Uy added.
Converge is currently building its national backbone with the goal of reaching 55 percent of households across the country by 2025.
The 15,000-km Bifrost Cable System "will be the largest capacity high-speed transmission cable across the Pacific Ocean" when completed in 2024, Converge said.
The subsea cable system will connect Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Guam and the west coast of North America, the internet provider said.
Uy also said Converge has been in talks with Elon Musk's Starlink low-orbit satellite system, but a final deal remains "premature."
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