KEPPEL has been granted a licence by the US for a subsea cable system connecting Singapore to the US, said the company on Friday (Jan 24).
Spanning over 20,000 km, the Bifrost Cable System is the world’s first subsea cable system directly connecting Singapore to the west coast of North America via Indonesia through the Java Sea and Celebes Sea.
Keppel is jointly developing the project with Edge Cable Holdings USA and Telekomunikasi Indonesia International.
The licence is required to land a submarine cable connecting the US to any foreign country.
Keppel said in a statement: “As the first subsea cable system linking South-east Asia to the United States to be approved in the past eight years, Bifrost will significantly enhance Singapore’s strategic position as Asia’s leading digital hub, as well as support the region’s fast-growing digital economy.”
Bifrost is part of Keppel’s connectivity system, including power, green energy, cooling, subsea cable connectivity and data centre solutions.
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Keppel first embarked on the Bifrost system in March 2021 with its partners Meta and Telin.
Loh Chin Hua, CEO of Keppel, said: “Achieving the United States Federal Communications Commission’s approval for the Bifrost Cable System is a significant milestone for the project. This landmark project, a testament to our strong partnership with Meta and Telin, will entrench Keppel as a strategic ecosystem partner to global cloud players and technology leaders, as we pursue our growth plans in digital infrastructure.
“This includes developing and operating other subsea cables linking South-east Asia with the rest of Asia and beyond,” he added.
Keppel said that Bifrost commenced system commissioning and acceptance testing on Jan 21, and is expected to be ready for commercial service in the second half of this year.
Loh said Bifrost’s successful deployment, is set to “generate attractive returns” for Keppel and its private-fund co-investors.
Beyond Bifrost, Keppel said that, together with its private funds including Keppel Asia Infrastructure Fund II, it is exploring opportunities to develop more cable systems connecting various regions.
Shares of Keppel closed 1.6 per cent or S$0.11 higher at S$6.81 on Friday.
