Telecom to deploy country’s first advanced optical network

Telecom is deploying Namibia’s first optical dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) network. The network will increase the operator’s transmission capacity to 1.6 Terabits per second.
New 10G and 40G channels – individual beams of light each carrying data at 10 or 40 gigabits per second – will provide low-latency services and improved international connectivity. Nokia Siemens Networks will provide the DWDM equipment and related services for the deployment, the benefits of which will also be extended to the neighboring countries of Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The DWDM deployment will take place on the existing national fibre optic network of Telecom Namibia and partially on the optical ground wire (OPGW) routes of NamPower, the state-owned power utility firm. The network will be connected to the West Africa Cable System (WACS), Namibia’s first ever undersea fibre optic link to the global submarine cable networks that landed on its shores in February this year. This will ensure increased bandwidth and higher data speeds, along with improved direct international connectivity for Telecom Namibia subscribers. The DWDM network will also be extended to the borders of neighbouring countries. As a result, operators in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana will benefit from higher capacity and improved international connectivity through WACS.
“Nokia Siemens Networks will provide a scalable and cost-effective transport backbone to address the anticipated increase in transmission volumes, especially with WACS expected to launch in the first quarter of 2012. The DWDM network is also completing yet another element in our Next Generation Network as part of our Strategic Blueprint,” said Hein Bader, chief operations officer at Telecom.
Nokia Siemens Networks will provide its hiT 7300 DWDM platform that offers connections with low latency; brings down operating costs; and speeds up service delivery. The hiT 7300 platform is part of the company’s Liquid Transport architecture that makes the optical transport layer more flexible and software-configurable, thus allowing for more cost-effective traffic transmission. In addition, Nokia Siemens Networks will enable Telecom to add capacity, as and when, it requires by simply adding a transponder to the DWDM system. The operator will also benefit from simplified network operations and end-to-end network performance monitoring with Nokia Siemens Networks’ network management system.
The contract includes delivery of services such as installation, network planning and optimisation and hardware, software and competence development services.
“Nokia Siemens Networks helps operators such as Telecom Namibia reduce the cost of transition to high-capacity optical transport networks by optimising the use of existing fibre. Our optical network products and services offer flexibility and scalability to eliminate the need for large upfront investments, while equipping operators to deal with growing bandwidth demands effectively,” said Dimitri Diliani, head of the Africa region at Nokia Siemens Networks.