Paratus utilises Infinera solutions for fastest Africa-Europe route

In a bid to solidify its position as an expert network provider in Africa, Paratus Group has employed Infinera's GX Series and FlexILS solutions. This deployment makes it possible to establish the lowest-latency express route between Johannesburg and Lisbon. These services will boast a latency as low as 123 milliseconds, supporting wavelengths up to 800G.

The solutions were implemented on the recently finalised 1,890-km Paratus express fibre link, which runs from Johannesburg to Europe via Botswana and Swakopmund. It subsequently connects Johannesburg with the Equiano subsea cable, which runs from Namibia to Lisbon and beyond to London and the rest of Europe.

Paratus' new superhighway provides network operators with an unrivalled opportunity for capacity and redundancy where resilience and high-speed performance are key. The network ensures seamless data flow, efficient communication, and uninterrupted services. By utilising Infinera's solutions, Paratus can mitigate potential cable station faults, ensuring the network remains functional and intact around the clock. The Equiano subsea cable, for which Paratus is the landing partner, offers diverse routing and geographically separated paths to supplement this.

Martin Cox, Chief Commercial Officer of Paratus Group, highlighted the group's role in Africa. "As a steadfast partner on the ground in Africa, Paratus offers unrivalled wholesale capacity solutions for network operators, as exemplified by our advanced technology from Infinera, our infrastructure, and our commitment to offering redundancy," he said.

Schalk Erasmus, CEO of Paratus Group, expressed his excitement over the development, attributing it to the group's continuous investment in creating Africa's quality network. He said, "This is an exciting time for network operators in South Africa because they can now enjoy the fastest and most robust connectivity from Africa to Europe."

By deploying Infinera's GX networking solution, Paratus can use the industry's highest-capacity solution to offer its customers high-performance services, minimising latency and maximising reliability. Nick Walden, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales at Infinera, also commented, "We are pleased to work with Paratus to launch these new services to the region."

The partnership between Paratus Group and Infinera marks a significant milestone in bolstering Africa's network infrastructure and connectivity capabilities. With the deployment of cutting-edge solutions like the GX Series and FlexILS, Paratus is poised to deliver unmatched performance and reliability to its customers across the continent. This collaboration underscores a shared commitment to driving innovation and providing superior network solutions that meet the evolving needs of businesses and consumers in Africa and beyond.