Fiber optics to connect Taiwan

The first undersea fiber optic cable linking the Chinese mainland to the main island of Taiwan is set to be operational in 2013, the telecom operator China Union said Tuesday.

This is the third telecom communication cable linking the mainland and Taiwan after two others were completed in August linking Xiamen, Fujian Province, and Jinmen, a Taiwan-administered county some two kilometers off the mainland.

The new 270-kilometer-long cable is jointly invested by the three largest mainland telecom operators of China Unicom, China Mobile and China Telecom, and Taiwan's Far Eastone, Taiwan Mobile, Taiwan International Cable Network and Chunghwa Telecom.

Once completed, it will create a link between Fuzhou and Tamsui, Taipei county, following the same route as the first cross-Straits submarine telegraph cable built in 1887.

"By using 16 core optic fibers and no-trace transmission technology, the cable can operate with a capacity of 6.4 terabytes per second, or simultaneously transmit 1.6 million high-definition television channels," said Hu Xingzheng, a head of China Unicom's Fujian branch.

Chen Wen-ray, president of the Taiwan International Cable Network, said the cable will provide both sides with improved and less expensive service.

"Unlike the cables between Xiamen and Jinmen, this one will reach further to the main island of Taiwan," Wen Baoqiu, China Unicom's spokesman, told the Global Times. Wen would not disclose how much the project would cost nor by how much rates will be cut.

The Fujian-based Southeast Express reported companies on both sides will invest more than $30 million. Cable connections between Xiamen and Jinmen have reduced telecom rates by up to 40 percent.

"While the cable saves money and brings convenience to both sides, which are relying on a transfer service in Hong Kong and other places, it will also promote deeper economic cooperation," said Sheng Jiuyuan, director of the Shanghai-based Pudong Research Center on Taiwan Economics.

"Substantial cooperation like this will help strengthen the cooperation across the Straits, and mainland companies will get more opportunities to invest in Taiwan," Sheng said.

The new cable can meet the fast growing demand and communication security will also be greatly improved, Han Zhigang, vice president of China Unicom, said.