Africa Coast to Europe (cable system)
Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) is an optical-fiber submarine cable system serving 24 countries on the Europe , west coast and south Africa, managed by a consortium of 20 members. The ACE cable connects more than 450 million people, either directly for coastal countries or through land links for landlocked countries such as Mali and Niger. ACE is also the first international submarine cable to land in Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Guinea, Liberia, Mauritania, São Tomé and Príncipe and Sierra Leone. Agreements are being put in place to allow the arrival of other operators in  countries along the ACE cable route. Guinea-Bissau is the next country to be connected to the submarine cable. ACE Consortium consists of telecommunications operators and member countries that have invested in the total 700 million dollars project, sometimes with the financial support of the World Bank. The consortium agreement was signed on 5 June 2010 and on 15 December 2012, this 17,000 km-long cable was put into service for the first time. The official inauguration ceremony was held in Banjul, Gambia, on 19 December 2012. The 4 to 5 cms diameter cable runs at around 6,000m below  the sea level.The maximum capacity of the entire system is increased from 12.8 Tbps in the design to 20 Tbps. It has been manufactured by Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) and laid by ships from ASN and Orange Marine. ACE consortium. The cable cost consortium members $700 million: Landing points. Segment 1 Segment 2 Segment 3 Segment 4 (The last segment is in service - 1 June 2021) Technical features. This 17 000-kilometers long cable is the only one connecting 24 west African and European countries. The ACE consortium members are organized according to a global access concept: multiple  investors in one landing station. ACE marine routes have a low history of fault and a time-proof technology. The cable is able to adopt newer transponder technology. Technical features are as below : See also. List of international submarine communications cables Individual cable systems off the west coast of Africa include: External links. ACE-Africa Coast to Europe website