Palawan to get new PLDT fiber optic cable

The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) is investing P1.4 billion for the construction of a new fiber optic cable (FOC) transmission backbone in Palawan, one of the country’s most geographically remote island groups.

Slated for completion in the first half of 2013, the new transmission network will have an initial capacity of 400 gigabites per second.

The new backbone would result in “a huge expansion of the existing capacity of the digital radio transmission system currently serving the island province,” the company said.

“This will not only enhance basic services like voice and text. It will also make possible high-speed, large-capacity fixed and mobile Internet services like Smart’s LTE [Long Term Evolution] and PLDT’s

Fiber to the Home (FTTH) service,” said Rolando G. Peña, head of network and IP systems PLDT and its subsidiary Smart Communications.

“Better communications will boost Palawan’s booming P4-billion tourism industry and also be a boon to schools, banks, hospitals, small businesses and government agencies which can operate more efficiently using fast and reliable communications,” Peña said.

The first land-based transmission backbone serving Palawan was built by Smart in 2004. This used microwave radio to transmit data and made it possible for Smart to offer multimedia messaging and mobile Internet on top of voice calls and SMS.

Before this, the island was being served using satellite links, which were costly and had limited capacity.

Since then, communications traffic has grown significantly, requiring the installation of large-capacity networks to serve Palawan.

Jointly managed by PLDT and Smart, the project involves laying down nearly 300 kilometers of undersea fiber optic cable (FOC) from Iloilo to northern Palawan plus another 364 kilometers of FOC cable inland to Puerto Princesa City.

This system will connect Palawan to PLDT’s nationwide domestic fiber optic transmission network.