As a member of AAE-1 submarine cable consortium, Mobily has signed a new supply contract with NEC Corporation to implement the S1H segment, representing the Thailand-to-Vietnam-and-Hong Kong section of the network.

Mobily announced earlier this year signing of the agreement, including 17 operators in Europe, Asia and the Middle East to implement and maintain AAE-1 submarine cable with 25,000 km length, starting from Hong Kong and ending to France passing the Far East, Middle East, East Africa and Europe.

NEC holds a wealth of experience in submarine cable projects throughout the Asia Pacific region, since it implemented about 200,000 km of submarine cables worldwide, which provides best-in-class system component design, compatible with the overall AAE-1 system architecture.

The consortium will work with NEC to ensure AAE-1's Thailand-Hong Kong segment is ready for service (RFS) at the same time as the Europe-Asia segment. This is yet further demonstration of a commitment to providing superior connectivity on the Europe-Middle East-Asia route, with increased diversity of connectivity to major telecoms hubs in connecting countries along the route.

Stretching approximately 25,000 km, AAE-1 is scheduled to be ready for service in 2016 as the first submarine cable linking the Far East to Europe at the possible lowest rate of delay and high transfer capacities ranging up to more than 40 terabits, which will contribute significantly to the growth of the business volume in the countries passing through.

When completed in 2016, the AAE-1 cable network will connect Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, Pakistan, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Yemen, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Greece, Italy and France, with other locations under consideration.