Telecom Egypt, Grid Telecom cooperate to build submarine cable linking Egypt, Greece

CAIRO - 21 June 2022: Telecom Egypt and GRID Telecom, a subsidiary of the Greek Independent Electricity Transmission Operator (IPTO), announced the signing of a joint cooperation agreement to link Egypt and Greece by building a new submarine cable that follows one of the submarine cable systems extending across the Mediterranean.

 

This came during a visit by a delegation of the Greek IPTO to Telecom Egypt headquarters in the Smart Village in Cairo, where the agreement was signed by Adel Hamed, Managing Director and CEO of Telecom Egypt, Manos Manosakis, Chairman and CEO of IPTO, and Georgios Besiris, Director of Grid Telecom, according to a press release.

 

This agreement comes within the framework of Telecom Egypt's vision and expansion strategy to enhance its international infrastructure, expand its networks and multiply access points within the Mediterranean, by opening an eastern gateway to Europe through Greece. The new cable is the shortest way to cross the Mediterranean region to the Balkans and other destinations such as Genoa and Marseille via land and sea routes, which contributes to strengthening Egypt's strategic position as a global center for communications services and data traffic between East and West.

 

This cooperation comes after the two companies signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Athens on Feb.9, paving the way for exploring different connectivity options between Greece and Egypt, based on the distinguished infrastructure and international connectivity capabilities of the two companies with neighboring countries, now and in the future, using the latest optical fiber technologies.

 

Managing Director and CEO of Telecom Egypt, Adel Hamed, said that Telecom Egypt is constantly working on developing its international network by investing in new submarine cable systems to keep pace with the increasing demand for telecommunications services regionally and around the world.

 

He added that the new cooperation with Grid Telecom will give his company’s international infrastructure more flexibility and spread and add a new access point for Europe across the Mediterranean basin, which is of strategic importance in international telecommunication services.

 

“The Southeast Mediterranean region is witnessing many aspects of continuous cooperation towards establishing this region as a vital hub for data and energy traffic,” Manos Manosakis, Chairman and CEO of IPTO, said.

 

He continued, "We are pleased with this cooperation between IPTO's Grid Telecom and Telecom Egypt, the first integrated telecom operator in Egypt and one of the largest submarine cable operators in the region.

 

The Egyptian government owns 80 percent of Telecom Egypt, and it is the oldest telecom company in the region. It was established about 160 years ago, and it provides all terrestrial voice communications services, Internet services and mobile services.

 

 

Telecom Egypt operates within the telecommunication services sector, focusing on integrated telecommunication services. It has subsidiaries operating across British Islands, Western Europe, Northern Africa and Middle East.