English (UK) 
简体中文(中国) According to Vietnannet, FPT Telecom will invest $87 million to participate in the Asia Link Cable (ALC) project. The company’s Board of Directors has recently approved the investment plan for the ALC project, which will connect Vietnam to international destinations via an undersea fiber optic cable.
Launched by a consortium comprising China Telecom Global Limited (CTG), Globe Telecom, Inc. (Globe), DITO Telecommunity Corporation (DITO), Singapore Telecommunications Limited (Singtel) and Unified National Networks Sdn Bhd (UNN) in late 2022, the Asia Link Cable spans approximately 6,000km, connecting multiple locations in the Asian region, including Hong Kong SAR (China), Hainan (China), Luna and Bauang (Philippines), Tungku (Brunei), and Changi (Singapore).
Supplied by HMN Tech, the ALC cable system will have a minimum of 8 fiber pairs, with a minimum designed trunk capacity of 18 Tbps on each fiber pair. When completed, the ALC cable system will contribute to adding capacity and diversity to the existing Internet network in the region.
The ALC project is expected to cost $300 million and is expected to be completed in Q3, 2025.
FPT Telecom plans to invest $87 million, equivalent to approximately VND 2,100 billion, in the ALC project. This cost does not include VAT and other taxes and fees related to investing in international cables in Vietnam. FPT Telecom will raise the investment capital from bank loans and the company’s business development investment capital. According to FPT Telecom, in 2023, the company is expected to spend VND 300 billion to invest in cable.
This is the first international subsea cable project for FPT Telecom to act as a landing party in Vietnam. FPT Telecom will invest, construct, and operate a new cable landing station in Vietnam.
There are now five in-service international submarine cable connecting Vietnam, including the Asia America Gateway (AAG), Asia Pacific Gateway (APG), SEA-ME-WE3(SMW3), TGN Intra Asia (TGN-IA), and Asia-Africa-Euro 1 (AAE-1).
In addition, Viettel has landed Asia Direct Cable (ADC) in Quy Nhơn City in April 2022, and VNPT has participated in the Southeast Asia–Japan 2 (SJC2) project. The ADC cable system is expected to be ready for service in late 2023, while the SJC2 will be further delayed.
Vietnam has been sufferring from frequent cable faults in the past years. Recently, the five in-service subsea cables were in fault during the same period, taking several months for repair due to permit issues and short of repair vessels in the region.
According to the direction of the Ministry of Information and Communications, by 2025, the total number of submarine cable routes used by Vietnamese companies is expected to be around 10, twice the current number. The operation of new submarine cable routes such as SJC2, ADC, and ALC will contribute to realizing this policy and supplementing capacity to meet the demand for international internet connectivity.
