THE HAGUE–Internet prices have gone down for St. Eustatius and Saba since the islands have been connected to the international optic fibre cable structure on surrounding islands.
Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk informed the Dutch Parliament this week that the construction of the optic fibre cable that connects St. Eustatius and Saba to the international optic fibre cable in St. Maarten, St. Kitts and St. Barths was successfully completed.
The sea cable is fully operational and is in use by the telecom providers in St. Eustatius and Saba. The exploitation is in the hands of Saba Statia Cable System SSCS of which the shares are managed by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations BZK.
Plasterk explained that the point of departure of this “not for profit” exploitation of SSCS was an efficient management aimed at continuity and with healthy business economic principles.
Since the start of the construction of the sea cable in 2012, the purchasing tariffs for the internet providers, the local telecom operators have been reduced from more than US $400 per mbit to less than US $40 per mbit.
Also, the connection with the two islands has become much more reliable because the sea cable is less vulnerable to hurricanes. It is now up to the local telecom providers to exploit the possibilities that the sea cable offers in an optimal manner and to create new products and services for the residents of St. Eustatius and Saba, the Minister concluded.
Plasterk’s update was in response to a request of the Second Chamber to receive information on the state-of-affairs regarding the optic fibre cable of the islands with St. Maarten. There had been some issues with the approval of the landing of the cable in St. Maarten a few years ago.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/60824-completed-sea-cable-benefits-saba-statia
View comments
Hide comments