Keppel's Bifrost Cable System Officially Declared Ready for Service
Keppel Ltd. officially announces the Bifrost Cable System is now Ready for Service (RFS), with commercial operations imminent within weeks. This 20,000 km subsea cable system is a monumental upgrade to Asian connectivity, featuring a direct route optimized for today's high-demand digital environment.
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| Bifrost Subsea Cable Hits RFS Status, Promises Fastest PH-US AI Link |
Critical Tech Specs and Value Proposition
The Bifrost cable achieves a significant milestone: it is the first direct link from Singapore to the US West Coast via Indonesia, traversing the Java and Celebes Seas, boosting network resilience and diversifying traffic.
- Speed Advantage: It boasts a round-trip latency of under 165 milliseconds between Singapore and the USA, making it up to 10 milliseconds faster than many existing systems. This is crucial for real-time services, cloud performance, and financial trading.
- Capacity for AI: The system delivers over 260 Tbps of new trans-Pacific capacity, specifically optimized to handle massive AI workloads, cloud-native platforms, and high-volume digital services.
- Philippine Impact: A dedicated branching unit lands in Davao, with Converge serving as the landing party. This provides the Philippines with essential network redundancy and diversity, directly powering the nation’s digital evolution with a crucial direct link to the US.
Also Read: Converge's Surf2Sawa; A Success Story in Prepaid Broadband
Strategic Deployment and Ownership
The main landing points include Singapore, Guam, and Grover Beach, California. Branching units extend connectivity to Jakarta and Manado (Indonesia), Davao (Philippines), and Winema, Oregon. This network design ensures flexible traffic routing and robust regional interconnection.
Keppel holds a significant stake, co-owning five out of the total 12 fiber pairs. According to Keppel CEO Manjot Singh Mann, this project solidifies Singapore's status as Asia's premier digital hub. Converge CEO Dennis Anthony Uy confirms the infrastructure is vital for supporting Asia-Pacific demands.
The Bifrost cable, constructed by global trailblazer Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN), is now poised to be a cornerstone for the next phase of global data exchange and digital transformation.