Glo to complete $250 million submarine cable by next May

The chief operating officer of Nigeria's Globacom said the carrier's US$250 million, 9,500-kilometer submarine cable will be completed by May 2009.

The cable, expected to connect Africa with Europe and the United States, is nearing completion, said Globacom COO Mohammed Jameel.

Speaking in Accra last weekend, Jameel said the project would run from London to 14 West African countries, with a dedicated link to the U.S.

"Glo submarine cable is expected to reach Ghana by May 2009 and shortly after, Nigeria," he said in a statement.

He said the completion of the project will "revolutionize" the provision of telecom services on the subcontinent by making them affordable to individuals and corporations.

"It will enable more services and products to be introduced by Globacom," he said.

He said Glo would start operations in Ghana by the end of this year, and hopes to hit a subscriber base of 2 million in two years.

Glo has applied to the NCA for a 3G license, he said, expressing optimism that Glo will have the license soon, along with the cable connection, to improve bandwidth for businesses that need it.

"These would help Glo to provide high speed Internet connectivity, data and voice transmission, and so on," he said.

He praised the NCA for making the license bidding process "extremely transparent" and keeping to the timeline for issuing the license.