Before the

**Federal Communications Commission**

**Washington, D.C. 20554**

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| In the Matter of                 | * | SCL-MOD-20000201-00006       |
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| TRANSGULF COMMUNICATIONS, LTD.,  | ) |                              |
| INC.                             | * |                              |
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| Application for Authority for    |   |                              |
| Amendment of a Cable Landing     | * |                              |
| License and *nunc pro tunc pro   | * |                              |
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| Cable Landing License            | * |                              |
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**MODIFICATION OF CABLE LANDING LICENSE AND TRANSFER OF CONTROL**

**Adopted:** September 5, 2000 **Released:** September 6, 2000

By the Chief, Telecommunications Division, International Bureau:

# Introduction

### In this Order, we modify the cable landing license held by Transgulf Communications Ltd., Inc. (TGCL) (the Applicant) to change the landing point in the United States from Freeport, Texas to a new location in Corpus Christi, Texas, and to amend the specifications of the system described in the license to reflect a repeaterless system in the Gulf of Mexico.[^1] The Application also requests authority to complete a *nunc pro tunc pro forma* transfer of control of TGCL. [^2] The original license authorized TGCL, pursuant to the Cable Landing License Act,[^3] and Executive Order No. 10530,[^4] to land and operate a fiber optic submarine cable system, called the TGCL system, extending between the United States, Mexico, and other international locations. The license subsequently was modified to reflect the transfer of control of TGCL to Margus Telecom International Ltd. (MTI).[^5]

2.  The Application, as amended, requests authority to change the United
    States cable landing point from Freeport, Texas, to Corpus Christi,
    Texas. According to the Application, the precise location of the
    landing station in Corpus Christi is Latitude 27º 35.763" N,
    Longitude 97º 12.858" W. TGCL will maintain ownership and control
    over the License, and will own and control the U.S. landing
    stations, the U.S. land portion of the TGCL cable from the landing
    stations to the U.S. beach joints of the submerged portion of cable,
    and the TGCL U.S. cable landing stations' assets. The TGCL system
    will continue to be operated on a non-common carrier basis.

3.  As shown in Exhibit A, the new proposed TGCL system will festoon
    along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico from Corpus Christi to Cancun,
    the Mexican international gateway. The TGCL system will be a
    repeaterless submarine cable design housing a total of 48 fibers.
    Each fiber pair will be equipped with 2.5 Gbps transmission
    equipment capable of carrying 30,720 circuits operating at 64 Kbps
    each. The total initial baseband capacity will amount to 737,280
    circuits. All transmission equipment will be Wavelength Division
    Multiplexing (WDM) ready, initially capable of transmitting 4
    wavelengths or 10 Bps per fiber pair. The overall system capacity
    will be 240 Gbps or 2,949,120 circuits. The TGCL system will
    generally be a self-healing ring configuration, by complementing
    existing carrier's networks. However, in certain areas of Mexico
    where the system segments do not complement existing structures, the
    system will operate on a point-to-point basis.[^6]

4.  TGCL is an Oklahoma corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of
    MTI, a New Jersey corporation, which together with its Mexican
    subsidiary MEXIGULF TELECOMUNICACIONES, S.A. DE C.V. (MEXIGULF) will
    own and operate the TGCL system.[^7]

# Comments

5.  We placed the Application on public notice on April 19, 2000.[^8] We
    received no comments. Pursuant to Section 1.767(b) of the
    Commission's rules,[^9] the Cable Landing License Act, and Executive
    Order No. 10530, we informed the Department of State of the
    modification request.[^10] The Department of State, after
    coordinating with the National Telecommunications and Information
    Administration and the Department of Defense, stated that it has no
    objection to approving the Applicant's request to change the landing
    point in the United States from Freeport, Texas to a new location in
    Corpus Christi, Texas, and to amend the specifications of the system
    described in the license to reflect a repeaterless system in the
    Gulf of Mexico.[^11]

# Discussion

6.  We grant the Applicant's request to change the landing point in the
    United States from Freeport, Texas to a new location in Corpus
    Christi, Texas. Given the close commercial and communications
    relationship between the State of Texas and Mexico, TGCL believes
    that the TGCL system should have a landing site in a more developed
    location of Texas.[^12] The modification would not affect the
    ownership of the cable system, its status as a non-common carrier
    system, or control of the landing point. The public interest will be
    served by providing cost-efficient routing for carriers to meet
    increasing demands for services on the U.S.-Mexico route and by
    reducing risks to the cable due to offshore oil activities off the
    coast of Texas. Based on these unopposed assertions, we find that
    grant of the modification would serve the public interest.

7.  We grant the Applicant's request to amend the specifications of the
    TGCL system described in the license to reflect a repeaterless
    system in the Gulf of Mexico. The Applicant asserts that several key
    factors have changed since granting the license for the TGCL
    system,[^13] and that the public interest will be served by
    maintaining repeaterless spans below 400 km, keeping a near 6dB
    transmission margin at the beginning of the life of the system,
    using the maximum cable fiber count currently available, making use
    of WDM, and providing access to major population centers along the
    Mexican west coast, including land segments to Mexico City,
    Villahermosa and Merida.[^14] Based on these unopposed assertions,
    we see no reason to deny the Applicant's request to amend the
    specifications of the TGCL system.

8.  We also grant the Applicant's request for *nunc pro tunc* approval
    of a transfer of indirect control of TGCL that Applicant asserts
    should be deemed *pro forma*. For exigent business reasons, MTI and
    the Margus group of companies consolidated the Margus group of
    operating subsidiaries into a newly formed holding company, Margus
    Holdings Company (Holdings), a Delaware corporation and the sole
    shareholder of MTI.[^15] Through MTI, Holdings has 100% ownership of
    TGCL. Holdings is controlled by Mr. Auguste Dodeman, a U.S. citizen
    who holds a 60% interest. In addition, William Wall, a U.S. citizen,
    also holds a 10% or greater ownership interest in Holdings. There
    will be no change in the ultimate management of TGCL or MTI. The
    proposed transaction has only added an additional parent company to
    TGCL. Accordingly, this transaction is similar to categories of
    transactions we have deemed to be *pro forma* and find it is
    reasonable in this instance to grant the Applicant's request to
    complete a *nunc pro tunc* transfer of indirect control of TGCL to
    Holdings. However, we caution the Applicant that our rules require
    prior approval of such transfers of control and urge the Applicant
    to plan accordingly in the future.

# Ordering Clauses

9.  Consistent with the foregoing and pursuant to the Cable Landing
    License Act and Executive Order 10530, IT IS ORDERED that the
    Application, File No. SCL-MOD-20000201-00006, IS GRANTED and the
    TGCL cable system cable landing license is MODIFIED to (1) change
    the landing point in the United States from Freeport, Texas to a new
    location in Corpus Christi, Texas; (2) amend the specifications of
    the system described in the license to reflect a repeaterless system
    in the Gulf of Mexico; and (3) approve the *nunc pro tunc pro forma*
    transfer of indirect control of Transgulf Communications Ltd., Inc.
    to Margus Holdings Company.

10. This Modification of Cable Landing License does not modify any other
    terms or conditions imposed in the license.

11. This Order is issued under Section 0.261 of the Commission's rules,
    47 C.F.R. § 0.261, and is effective upon adoption. Petitions for
    reconsideration under Section 1.106 or applications for review under
    Section 1.115 of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R. §§ 1.106, 1.115,
    may be filed within 30 days of the date of public notice of this
    Order (see 47 C.F.R. § 1.4(b)(2)).

    FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

    Rebecca Arbogast

    Chief, Telecommunications Division

    International Bureau

[^1]: *See Transgulf Communications Ltd., Inc.*, File No. SCL-90-006, 6
    FCC Rcd 2335 (CCB 1991).

[^2]: *See* Transgulf Communications Ltd., Inc., Application for
    Authority for Amendment of a Cable Landing License and *Nunc Pro
    Tunc Pro Forma* Transfer of Control of a Cable Landing License,
    filed Feb. 1, 2000, (Application). *See also* Supplement to
    Application from Troy F. Tanner and Ulises R. Pin, Attorneys for
    Applicant, to Magalie Roman Salas, Secretary, Federal Communications
    Commission dated April 4, 2000 (Supplementary Letter) requesting
    authority to amend the specifications of the system to reflect a
    repeaterless system in the Gulf of Mexico. At the request of TGCL,
    we refrained from placing the Application on public notice to allow
    TGCL to file the Supplementary Letter modifying the Application.

[^3]: An Act Relating to the Landing and Operation of Submarine Cables
    in the United States, 47 U.S.C. §§ 34-39 (Cable Landing License
    Act).

[^4]: Exec. Ord. No. 10530 *reprinted as amended in* 3 U.S.C. § 301.

[^5]: On December 11, 1998, the Commission granted TGCL and MTI's
    request for transfer of control of TGCL to MTI. *See* *Transgulf
    Communications Ltd., Inc.*, File No. SCL-T/C-19980904-00016, 13 FCC
    Rcd 23623 (TD/IB 1998).

[^6]: *See* Supplementary Letter at 1-2.

[^7]: According to the Application, MEXIGULF, which is 49% owned by MTI,
    will own and operate the portion of the TGCL system located in
    Mexican territory. On January 28, 1999, MEXIGULF received a
    concession from the Mexican Government to "install, operate and
    exploit a public telecommunications network." Mexican Foreign
    Investment Law requires entities holding telecommunications
    concessions in Mexico to be owned 51% by Mexican individuals or
    entities. According to the Application, MEXIGULF is not a foreign
    carrier under the Commission's rules because it is only authorized
    to lease capacity to other authorized Mexican concessionaires,
    value-added service providers or owners of private networks and does
    not have the ability to provide international telecommunications
    services directly to the public. *See* Application at n.3.

[^8]: *See Non Streamlined International Applications Accepted for
    Filing*, Public Notice, Report No. TEL-00217NS (rel. April 19,
    2000).

[^9]: 47 C.F.R. § 1.767(b).

[^10]: Letters from Rebecca Arbogast, Chief, Telecommunications
    Division, International Bureau, Federal Communications Commission,
    to Steven Lett, Deputy U.S. Coordinator, Office of International
    Communications and Information Policy, U.S. Department of State
    (Feb. 25, 2000 and April 19, 2000).

[^11]: Letter from Richard C. Beaird, Deputy United States Coordinator,
    International Communications and Information Policy, U.S. Department
    of State, to Donald Abelson, Chief, International Bureau, Federal
    Communications Commission (August 31, 2000).

[^12]: *See* Application at 4.

[^13]: The most notable changes since granting the cable landing license
    for the TGCL system include: (a) 560 Mb/s transmission rate
    equipment is no longer available; (b) regenerator type undersea
    systems are seldom manufactured; (c) repeaterless technology
    currently allows cables to extend in excess of 400 km, without
    intermediate electronics; (d) other systems, including COLUMBUS-2
    and MAYA, have extensions to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands; and (e)
    since January 1997, there has been significant deregulation of the
    Mexican telecommunications sector. *See* Supplementary Letter at 1.

[^14]: *See* Supplementary Letter at 2-3.

[^15]: *See* Application at 5.