Triton pushes back Seahorse undersea cable project 1 more year, changes route

Wednesday, Mar 03, 2010

The completion date of the Caribbean's Seahorse-1 undersea cable project being developed by Triton Telecom, a subsidiary of Cobian International, has been pushed back by yet another year and seen some modifications to the route.

Seahorse is a submarine fiber optical ring circling the Caribbean from Miami. Phase 1 was originally due to start operation in May 2009 but was pushed back to January 2010 on the request of customers that wanted more time due to the global economic crisis.

Phase 1 is now due to be completed in January 2011 and the whole ring will be completed in early 2013.

NEW ROUTE

Seahorse-1 was originally designed to link Miami with Isla Verde in Puerto Rico, and later Cacique in the Dominican Republic with a branch line to Jamaica.

However, after realizing that the Miami-Puerto Rico route is eligible for US stimulus plan funding, Cobian decided to wait and apply for funding and go ahead with another section of the route first.

Yet, on discovering there was sufficient demand, Cobian decided to do a direct route from Miami to Kingston, Jamaica, instead of just a branch.

From there the optical ring will continue from Ocho Ríos in Jamaica to the Dominican Republic, and then on to Puerto Rico and Miami.

"We just kind of worked it in reverse, but it's better for the customers, it's better politically. The market was much more in need on that side of it, and everything worked into place for it," Negron said.

With the new landing in Jamaica, Cobian is now looking to have a branch leg to Cuba in the future. Last September, the US issued new rules that soften regulations that prohibited telecommunications and satellite linkages between the US and Cuba.

The rules followed an announcement by President Barack Obama in April of the easing of US trade restrictions on Cuba.

NEW FIBER OPTICS LICENSES IN JAMAICA

Another significant development that influenced the change of route was Jamaican utilities regulator OUR's opening requests for application (RFA) process for two licenses to build, own and operate a submarine fiber optic cable carrier facility. The submission deadline is February 26.

Cobian initially acquired the rights to what is now the Seahorse Caribbean undersea cable project that was being developed by the Trans-Caribbean Cable Company (TCCC) consortium. TCCC had a license for Jamaica which it sold to a company called JNAP.

That meant that Cobian would have had to work with JNAP in developing connectivity in Jamaica, which would have been more expensive than owning its own license.

"Now we're able to expand in Kingston, have Cobian and Triton representation there and apply for a license," Negron said.

STRATEGIC INVESTOR IN COBIAN

Cobian is also involved in an acquisition process. A cooperative of private investors called RAAS Inc, who are telecoms industry veterans that have worked with companies like AT&T and Sprint Nextel, are seeking to buy into Cobian International.

According to Negron, given that the project is already far along, the injection of fresh capital is neither a deterrent nor a positive thing.

BACKHAUL WITH NTT UNCERTAIN

Last year, Cobian reached an agreement with Japan's Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corporation (NTT) to provide the backhaul for Seahorse. However, due to a change in staff at NTT it is not clear now whether the agreement still stands.

However, there is an agreement with Time Warner Telecom to provide backhaul in the US at least. The company is talking to other possible providers including Level 3.

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

Still a key part of the project is Cobian's intention to pursue an alternative renewable energy solution to power the Seahorse undersea cable system. In February 2009, Triton signed a letter of intent with Canadian renewable energy company Schneider Power for this element of the project.

The entire ring would need a stable 40KW/h, according to Negron. Providing that amount of power from alternative sources is not an issue. What is an issue is ensuring that the type of power source units are not affected by external factors like hurricanes.

Solar power at the moment looks the most likely, but the company is also exploring the wind alternative. Traditional power would be the secondary backup and the tertiary source would be diesel.

Asked if she believes alternative energy is a completely viable option, Negron said, "yes, without a doubt."

"We have a responsibility in the telecoms industry to start looking at alternative energy solutions, and I believe it starts with something as large as this. I think this will set the pace for central office environments for years to come. We've got to change the way we do things."

 

Source: BNAmericas