Consortium to run fibre network from Europe to Asia through Northwest Passage

An Alaskan company has unveiled a billion-dollar project to run fibre from Europe to Asia. By doing so, it will increase internet connectivity in Canada’s Arctic. Far North Digital LLC has joined forces with True North Global Networks Limited Partnership of Canada to run 16,500 km of fibre optic cable from London in the United Kingdom to Tokyo, Japan. Last December the companies signed a memorandum of understanding with Finnish networks, cybersecurity and software solutions provider Cinia. Alcatel Submarine Networks will do the actual project design and installation. The estimated cost of the project is $1.48 billion Canadian. Throughout the route there will be branching units that will permit broadband rollout in other regions. In Canada those sites include Resolute, Tutoyatuk and Inuvik. Other branches will extend internet in Ireland, Iceland, Greenland and Alaska. The plan is to provide middle- and last-mile capabilities to internet service providers. “The objective is to build a fibre link between Europe and Asia through the Northwest Passage because that is the fastest, most secure route available,” Far North co-founder Ethan Berkowitz told the Wire Report in a telephone interview from Anchorage. “And when I say fastest, the latency on this route is about half of what it is on the comparable routes.” Global tensions make other prospective routes, such as across Europe to Asia, less feasible, he noted. The consortium is working with local governments and Indigenous groups to facilitate the rollout in northern Canadian communities. “One of the things that we’ve learned is that when you connect communities that are otherwise off what we call off the road system it enables those communities to be more sustainable and more resilient,” Berkowitz said. “One of the values that we’re bringing to this project because we have this Alaska component to it, is we want to make sure that the Arctic communities in Canada have access to broadband capacity. It’s transformative. “It is really important for us to make sure that we are in good communication with the communities and the people in the communities to ensure that we’re providing the kind of service they most want under the terms and conditions that respect local traditions as well as local needs.” Far North has not been able to hold face-to-face meetings with locals due to the pandemic but Berkowitz, a former mayor of Anchorage and one-time Democratic candidate for governor of Alaska, is hopeful those sessions will occur soon. The Canadian government has the Universal Broadband Fund to permit connectivity in rural and remote areas. Berkowitz hopes to be able to secure funding through the UBF and through private investors. “We have not been able to access those funds at this point, we would very much like to and we would very much like to continue to the point of signing deals with potential large-scale Canadian institutional investors because so much of this project transits through Canada’s territory, we think it’s really critical to have extensive Canadian participation. Our group has Canadians that are part of it but we’d like to have substantial Canadian investment as well,” he stated. He characterized talks with the private sector as “very mature discussions”. To help with access to federal funds True North, the Canadian partner in the consortium, has hired lobbyist Curtis O’Nyon of Global Public Affairs in Ottawa. So far O’Nyon has had contact with 11 federal institutions including the Prime Minister’s Office, the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs. He has also been lobbying individual MPs and Senators. Shovels are already in the ground in Ireland. The target for in-service cable is the end of 2025. This dovetails nicely with the government’s goal of connecting 98 per cent of Canadians by 2026 and all Canadians by 2030. Updated on Mar. 14 to include news of the Irish fibre lay. –Reporting by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca and editing by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca

Consortium to run fibre network from Europe to Asia through Northwest Passage

News | March 11, 2022

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Consortium to run fibre network from Europe to Asia through Northwest Passage

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