Huawei to build undersea cable from Hong Kong to Sihanoukville

20 Jun 2019 2085 | Business & Trade Fairs

China’s Huawei on Monday announced a plan, in partnership with China Communications Construction Co, to install an undersea fiber-optic communications cable connecting Sihanoukville and Hong Kong.

The plan was announced during a meeting between Transport Minister Sun Chanthol and Mark Wong, Huawei Cambodia’s CEO.

Mr Wong did not provide details on the project’s starting and completion date but said that, once installed, the cable will give Cambodia reliable and enhanced connectivity.

Va Simsorya, spokesman for the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, said he welcomed the project, explaining that a submarine cable will boost the country’s Internet connectivity, which is particularly important now that the country aims to become a digital economy.

Im Vutha, Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC) spokesman, said only four companies have been granted licences to invest in submarine cables in the Kingdom, and that China Communications Construction Co and Huawei were not among them. He said TRC has not received licence applications from these companies.

“Any company wishing to invest in submarine cables in Cambodia first needs to apply for a licence with the regulator,” he said.

In March 2017, Cambodia’s first submarine telecommunications cable was officially launched, costing roughly $100 million. Known as the MCT cable (Malaysia, Cambodia, and Thailand), the project was a joint venture between Cambodia’s Telcothech (a subsidiary of Ezecom), Malaysia-based Telekom Malaysia Berhad, and Thai firm Symphony Communication Public Company Limited.

Comprising a system of 1,300 kilometres of optical fiber cable, it boasts a capacity of at least 30 terabits per second.

Early this year, Beijing-based China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) expressed its intention to invest in a submarine cable connecting Phnom Penh and Hong Kong.

Xu Siwei, a member of the board of directors at CRBC, announced the plan during a meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during the premier’s state visit to China in January.