By Mar-Vic Cagurangan, Marianas Variety
HAGÅTÑA — The Federal Communication Commission has granted Docomo Pacific a license to land and operate a second fiber-optic submarine cable in Guam and the Northern Marianas, paving the way for the installation of the $25 million Atisa network project.
“Docomo Pacific is pleased to have obtained another important permit related to the Atisa submarine cable system. With the FCC approval in hand, the final permit required is from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” said Jonathan Kriegel, president and CEO of Docomo.
The optical fiber system, approximately 279-km long, will connect Guam with Saipan, Rota, and Tinian, a game-changer that is touted to improve connectivity among the islands and stimulate competition in the local telecommunication industry.
Kriegel said the marine lay is expected to take place between late March and mid-May and commercial service is expected to launch in June. “Construction of the shore based facilities to support the Atisa is well under way,” he said.
The Atisa system, which will have a design capacity of 4.8 terabits per second (Tbps), will increase the number of cell sites on Saipan, Tinian and Rota.
