CASE STUDY
B
atelco, the Bahrain Telecommunications
Company, the leading digital services
provider in the Kingdom of Bahrain,
has selected Ciena’s Converged Packet Optical
Platform as the foundation for the new Batelco
Gulf Network (BGN).
The BGN runs over a state-of-the-art optical
transport network (OTN) to meet the demand
for reliable and cost-effective high bandwidth
connectivity and capacity for Batelco
customers and international carriers’ wholesale
needs, supporting up to 8.8Tbps and beyond.
The BGN cable system will be connecting
all the countries across the GCC (Gulf
Cooperation Council) in the Arabian Gulf
region. Consumers and businesses across the
GCC are consuming more OTT (Over-The-
Top) content such as HD video and services
from local and international providers,
driving demand for additional high-speed
connectivity services.
The BGN terrestrial fibre cable extends
1,400km and is managed by Batelco with
full control and manageability and can be
interconnected with other regional and
global cable systems for access to onward
connectivity to Europe, Asia, Africa and the
rest of the world.
Batelco Chief Global Business Officer, Adel
Al-Daylami, said that Batelco chose to invest
in the Batelco Gulf Network as a fully owned
and managed terrestrial fibre optic cable
network, thus providing the country with a
new state-of-the-art international gateway
that will enable Bahrain to meet the growing
demand for data services and applications.
“The BGN is a reliable alternative to more
vulnerable submarine cables, all with scalable
capacity and the shortest inter-Gulf latency.
This new partnership with Ciena will enable
us to achieve all of this,” Al-Daylami added.
Virginie Hollebecque, Managing Director for
Western Europe and the Middle East, Ciena,
said: “Ciena is delighted to partner with
Batelco on the Batelco Gulf Network, which
will enhance communications and deliver
world class networking services for customers,
and position Bahrain as a regional leader and
innovator in telecoms services.
“Ciena is committed to supporting Batelco
through our extensive global experience and
expertise, and comprehensive professional
services in the region, to deliver highly
secure and reliable connectivity to Batelco
and its customers.”
Intelligent CIO spoke to Virginie
Hollebecque, Managing Director for Western
Europe and the Middle East, Ciena, to find
out more about the project.
How far has the project positioned
Bahrain as a regional leader and
innovator in telecoms services?
The Kingdom of Bahrain is emerging as a
regional leader in Digital Transformation
as it has been an early adopter of reforms
WE ALSO SEE A
STRONG TREND
IN TELCOS
TOWARDS THE
ADOPTION
OF ADAPTIVE
NETWORK.
to support technology-driven businesses
and empower them to drive the economy.
Batelco’s efforts are aligned with the
Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the Government
Action Plan 2019-2022 in positioning Bahrain
as a major hub for ICT and data movement.
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