PCCW Global Partners with Ciena to Upgrade RNAL with 100G Solutions

PCCW Global and Ciena^® Corporation jointly announced on January 11, 2012 to upgrade the RNAL submarine cable network with Ciena’s industry-leading WaveLogic™ coherent optical 100G networking solutions.

The RNAL is a part of the FNAL/RNAL submarine cable system, it is owned and operated privately by PCCW Global (formerly Reach), while the another part FNAL is an asset of Reliance Global. Reliance Globalcom had completed the upgrade of the FNAL with Ciena's coherent 40G optical networking solution by the end of August 2011.

This upgrade will significantly increase the capacity beyond the original design of PCCW Global’s North Asia Loop subsea routes, which span approximately 9,800 kilometers to connect Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. 

Following a rigorous selection procedure, PCCW Global will deploy Ciena platforms equipped with 100G submarine-cable-grade coherent line interfaces, which are designed to significantly and cost-effectively increase submarine cable network capacity without disrupting existing customer traffic or adding cost or complexity to the network.

Using Ciena’s WaveLogic™ coherent optical 100G networking processors, PCCW Global will light a ring of dark fibers on the RNAL Cable System so that it can support significantly more than its original design capacity. The network will deliver path-resilient cable capacity and interconnectivity with other regional and transpacific submarine cable systems terminating in or transiting through the most popular Asian traffic hubs in Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan.

In addition to the existing network monitoring system, Ciena’s intelligent submarine network solution will allow PCCW Global to actively monitor the health and performance of its existing wet plant, including optical repeaters from third-party vendors, while continuously optimizing traffic-carrying signals in real time to ensure optimal transmission performance is achieved. The Ciena Specialist Services team will work closely with PCCW Global for accurate and timely completion of  the design and implementation of the cable capacity upgrade.