By GBI

Gulf Bridge International (GBI), the Middle East’s newly established, privately owned submarine cable operator, is delighted to announce that Vodafone Qatar, Qatar’s rapidly growing new mobile operator, will provide a landing station for GBI’s cable in Qatar.

The GBI Cable System, which will utilize the latest subsea fiber cable technology, will connect all the countries of the Gulf region to each other and provide onward connectivity to Europe and Asia. The launch of GBI’s cable system will provide telecom operators and other communications companies, both in the region and globally, with greater choice, value, diversity and resilience.

Commenting on this agreement, Mr. Hamad Al Mannai, GBI’s Executive Vice Chairman said “GBI is excited to have Vodafone Qatar as a landing partner in Qatar. The international connectivity requirement to and from Qatar is growing rapidly, as Qatar develops its knowledge based economy. Partnering with Vodafone Qatar, we will be able to address that growth besides enabling the outreach of a valuable infrastructure as a key asset to the Qatari nation.“

”Since the entry of Vodafone to Qatar, we’ve worked hard to bring innovation in to this country’s telecommunications,” said CEO of Vodafone Qatar Grahame Maher. “This new landing station will enable Vodafone to bring better service and better value as well, ultimately making a world of difference for all people in Qatar.”

Mr. Ahmed Mekky, GBI’s CEO said “Partnering with Vodafone Qatar takes GBI one step closer to fulfilling our implementation plans. We believe that once operational, the GBI cable system will play a key role in facilitating communications and enabling the region to grow both socially and economically. “

Scheduled to launch in 2011 and designed to operate for up to 25 years, the GBI cable system will connect all the Gulf countries via a core ring, which can re-route traffic thereby increasing resilience. With a design capacity of up to 5 terabits per second on certain cable sections, the GBI Cable System will have the capability to meet the rapid growth in demand that has been forecast for traffic originating and terminating in Gulf.

About Gulf Bridge International

Gulf Bridge International (GBI) is a private company dedicated to connecting all the nations of the Gulf region to one another and to the rest of the world, using the latest fiber optic technologies. The GBI cable will be developed and owned by GCC investors who are building this strategic infrastructure to serve the entire region. GBI intends to be the carrier’s carrier of choice for traffic to and from the Gulf.