VSNL offers its undersea cable to BSNL

Right before state-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) announces a global tender to build an undersea link to Singapore v...

Right before state-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) announces a global tender to build an undersea link to Singapore via the Andaman Islands, Videsh Sanhar Nigam Ltd (VSNL) has offered it the use of its own undersea cable.

VSNL’s moves target making the ‘‘best possible use of government resources and avoid duplication of infrastructure creation,’’ in line with the forthcoming New Telecom Policy’s goals of encouraging infrastructure sharing.

The two companies are in dialogue for a possible financial arrangement on use of bulk capacity on VSNL’s route. BSNL’s own tender was likely to be floated later this month.

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If implemented, the tie-up with VSNL could help BSNL save roughly Rs 600 crore, the estimated cost of laying a trans-national cable.

Already, three undersea cable routes are already laid down by various operators and consortiums alone the India-Singapore route, including Sea-Me-We III, TIICS and I2I. Sea-Me-We IV and Falcon are underway, and likely to be operational by the year end.

BSNL’s undersea cable, announced by Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran last month aims at connecting Chennai to Sri Lanka and the Andamans with Singapore. It could take 15-17 months to complete, though VSNL’s own 5.12 Tbps ‘Tata Indicom Singapore Cable System’ took a record eight months to complete last year — around half the time most cables have taken along the route.

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