Jakarta, 2 March 2022 – As an effort to support the realization of digital inclusion, PT Telkom Indonesia (Persero) Tbk (Telkom) consistently and continuously develops telecommunications infrastructure across Indonesia even in the country's most remote regions and around the globe. This year, Telkom through its subsidiary PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin) has rejoined the Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 6 (SEA-ME-WE 6) international submarine cable communication system consortium. This was officially announced at the end of February 2022 as they began construction of a 19,200 km submarine cable system that connects several countries between Southeast Asia and Europe. In 2014, Telin participated in the SEA-ME-WE 5 consortium mega project.

The SEA-ME-WE 6 consortium consists of major operators from countries around the world, including Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company, Bharti Airtel Ltd. (India), Dhiraagu (Maldives), Djibouti Telecom, Mobily (Saudi Arabia), Orange (France), Singtel (Singapore), Sri Lanka Telecom, Telecom Egypt, Telekom Malaysia, Telin (Indonesia), and Trans World Associates (Pakistan).

SEA-ME-WE 6 connects many countries including Indonesia, from Singapore (Asia) to France (Europe) by crossing Malaysia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, India, Pakistan, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. SEA-ME-WE 6 comes with one of the lowest latencies available between Southeast Asia, Middle East and Western Europe, with transfer capability of over 100 terabytes per second or the equivalent of 40,000 high-definition videos every second. This infrastructure will have fiber optic cable with double capacity compared to the previous SEA-ME-WE infrastructure.

Telkom Wholesale & International Service Director, Bogi Witjaksono welcomed the establishment of SEA-ME-WE 6 and expressed full support for TelkomGroup to participate in this consortium of international infrastructure mega projects. “Telin's participation in SEA-ME-WE 6 will strengthen TelkomGroup's international cable infrastructure, which is targeted to improve the quality of faster broadband access and provide the best digital experience for customers. This is certainly a breath of fresh air as it can accelerate digital transformation and innovation that is expected to impact positively on national economic growth,” Bogi said.

Telin Chief Executive Officer, Budi Satria Dharma Purba is very enthusiastic about the construction of the SEA-ME-WE 6 submarine cable system, which will be another addition to Telin's existing global infrastructure. “SEA-ME-WE 6 will connect 10 countries stretching from Southeast Asia to Europe, with the expansion of connectivity to Indonesia using the existing Telin submarine cable communication system to provide users with faster broadband access. We have long seen a surge in demand for fast internet access due to changing trends such as flexible work arrangements, video streaming, and gaming. Telin is committed to supporting the development of Indonesia's digital ecosystem to escalate to an international level. Collaborating with global-scale companies in SEA-ME-WE 6, Telin is ready to serve national connectivity with reliable technology," Budi said.

With unpredictable connectivity demands coupled with dynamic digital transformation that ushers more and more consumers in Asia via Europe into digital reality, SEA-ME-WE 6 offers a high-reliability alternative route for heavy communications traffic between Asia and Europe and strengthens the overall network of each consortium partner through the new trans - Egyptian landing point.

This added flexibility enables service providers within the consortium to rapidly increase capacity, secure traffic, and lower the total cost of network ownership. The estimated completion of the submarine cable communication system is in the first quarter of 2025.

Until September 2021, Telkom has 170,035 km-long fiber optic cable consisting of 105,335 km domestic submarine cables and 64,700 km international submarine cables. This optical fiber reaches up to 496 IKK throughout Indonesia. To support fiber optic infrastructure, Telkom also has satellites with a total of 109 transponders.

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