Togo is aiming to fiberise the country’s network of electrical power lines, according to the Minister of the Digital Economy and Digital Transformation Cina Lawson.
According to business outlet Quartz, Lawson described the strategy as cost-effective, saying: “One of the costs of deploying fibre is digging the ground and burying the cable deep. Instead of doing that, we will deploy the cables on poles that host electric lines. Imagine when you tell a resident that you will give them high speed internet with their electricity at affordable prices.”
However, TeleGeography reports that in order to deliver this service, Togo’s government will need a minimum of EUR300 million (US$334 million). Lawson noted that while discussions are underway with lenders “we want to de-risk the project as the government by contributing financing, to make sure price points are low. If it’s entirely led by the private sector, they will need a return on investment which may lead to high prices.”
The move comes hard on the heels of Togo being connected to Google’s Equiano submarine cable, which CommsUpdate notes should be ready for service in Q4 2022. The cable is being deployed by CSquared Woezon, a joint venture between CSquared and Togolese state-owned telecommunications asset company Société d’Infrastructures Numériques (SIN).
CSquared Woezon landed the Equiano cable earlier this month by building a branch into Togo offering up to one terabit per second of capacity between Portugal and South Africa. Pioneer Consulting has been providing general subsea consulting services to CSquared Woezon, initially focusing on the design, procurement, and implementation of the Cable Landing Station and the system’s transmission equipment.
