Liquid Intelligent Technologies has partnered with Nokia to deploy the technology vendor’s transport network technology in the new terrestrial fibre route connecting Mombasa (Kenya) to Johannesburg (South Africa).

The announcement is significant because of the imminent launch of the new terrestrial data superhighway built by Liquid, connecting Kenya and South Africa.

Nokia said its transport technology enabled Liquid to build its first terrestrial route that will provide 12 terabits of capacity for carriers and service providers in South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the DRC.

As part of the agreement, Nokia is deploying 145 nodes of 1830 Photonic Service Switch (PSS) in the seven countries with a total design capacity up to 12 Terabits per second.

Once launched, the new, advanced optical transport backbone will enable Liquid Intelligent Technologies to address the growing demand for capacity and deliver submarine traffic to landlocked countries at an affordable cost.

The route is expected to provide the continent, especially landlocked regions, with more resilient connectivity and access to numerous datacentres and cloud resources. It could also serve as a viable alternative in the event of subsea cable outage between the two countries.

Liquid Intelligent Technologies’ new optical backbone covers the sites with a colourless and flexgrid ROADM network for improved agility and flexibility.

Nokia added that the Generalised Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) feature of the new optical transport network will help reduce network disruptions by enabling automatic rerouting to alternate paths as needed.

Liquid said the route, which measures 16,576 km, has been designed to cater to the demand for more capacity from hyperscale customers.

Rajiv Aggarwal, Head of Central East and West Africa (CEWA) Market Unit at Nokia, said, “Nokia’s next-generation optical network will enable Liquid Intelligent Technologies to maintain its leadership position and emerge as a preferred partner of organisations requiring massive capacity. We are delighted that our technology and expertise will help Liquid Intelligent Technologies provide the best-in-class digital infrastructure to Africa’s enterprises and will play a role in strengthening the digital infrastructure of the continent”.

Shahzad Manzoor Khan, Group Chief Technology Officer, Liquid Intelligent Technologies.

Shahzad Manzoor Khan, Group Chief Technology Officer, Liquid Intelligent Technologies, added, “Internet giants, established cloud service providers and other mega-organisations are demanding hyperscale datacentres that can support high levels of performance, spikes in demand, and redundancy while enabling massive availability. Our new terrestrial fibre corridor is the first of its kind in Africa in terms of distance and capacity”.

Hardy Pemhiwa, Group President and CEO of Cassava Technologies said, “We are proud to partner with Nokia as we expand our high speed fibre backbone on the continent. This investment further demonstrates our commitment towards Africa’s inclusive digital transformation”.

In November 2022 Pemhiwa emphasised the need for African companies to take charge of technology innovation and reiterated Cassava Technologies’ geographic vision and strategy to make affordable, quality broadband connectivity readily available to the mass market.

The intention is to add to the company’s 110 000km network, with continued focus on datacentre and cloud services markets.