Thailand's NT Signs with APTelecom to Launch Thailand-US Submarine Cable Feasibility Study

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Thailand's National Telecom (NT) and APTelecom signed a contract in Singapore for a feasibility study on the Thailand-US Submarine Cable System (THUS), officially launching the project's technical, economic, legal, and commercial feasibility study. The study is funded by the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), with APTelecom responsible for implementation.

THUS is planned as an open-access trans-Pacific submarine cable connecting Thailand and the United States, with a route length of up to approximately 11,500 miles. The current study proposal suggests the route could connect to the United States via Southeast Asian countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam, and will evaluate different routes, project costs, investment models, and regulatory requirements.

APTelecom's scope of study includes submarine cable route design, economic analysis, commercialization plans, financial feasibility, and regulatory review, and will produce the foundational materials needed for subsequent financing and project implementation decisions. Thailand's NT stated that the study will also assess construction costs, potential routes, and investment models to provide a basis for determining whether to proceed to the engineering construction phase.

The project background is related to Thailand's need to update its existing international submarine cable connections. USTDA disclosed that THUS is intended to replace the existing Thailand-US submarine cable connection, which is gradually approaching the end of its operational life, and to build new trans-Pacific communications infrastructure using trusted technology standards. The new system is positioned as an open-access network, serving a regional communications market covering more than 600 million people in Southeast Asia.

The signing on September 23 is the next project milestone following the September 14 signing of the feasibility study funding agreement between USTDA and Thailand's NT. At this stage, THUS remains in the feasibility study phase and has not yet entered the submarine cable procurement, EPC, laying, or construction phase; whether to proceed with construction and the specific scale of investment will be determined based on the study results.