Network Infrastructure
KPNQwest connects Nordic ring
By Total Telecom staff
29 May 2001
Pan-European operator KPNQwest said Tuesday it has connected the Nordic ring of its planned 20,000 km network one month ahead of schedule. The company has now linked up five of the seven OC-192 self-healing rings in its European network, and plans to have the whole thing operational by the end of the year.
The 4,500 km Nordic ring connects six cities: Stockholm, Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Helsinki, Malmo and Oslo.
Jack McMaster, president and CEO of KPNQwest, described the completion of the ring as "a key construction milestone," saying it is "the largest and most complex" section of the planned "EuroRings" network.
The Hoofddorp, Netherlands-based company plans to offer wholesale and retail connectivity, and networking and hosting services across the Nordic ring, including IP VPN and IP voice networking solutions. The ring includes 38 repeater huts, re-generator stations, power supply and back-up, the company said. It is connected via a submarine cable to the German ring in Hamburg.
The EuroRings network, when complete, should link up 50 European cities, and connect to Qwest's North American infrastructure. The five complete sections are the Western ring, channel ring, German ring, Southern ring and Nordic ring. Still to be completed are the Eastern and Iberian rings.
KPNQwest is jointly owned by Qwest and Dutch incumbent KPN. Qwest's CEO, Joe Nacchio, on Monday denied rumors that his company would buy out KPN's stake in the joint venture.
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