HyperOne, yet another startup from Australian entrepreneur Bevan Slattery, announced late last month that it had begun construction of a 20,000-km fiber backbone across Australia. The company also announced it has awarded AFL Global a contract to supply fiber for at least the initial phase, which HyperOne expects to complete by the end of this year.
Phase 1a of the project will see deployment of a 2,300-km diverse fiber loop that will link Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne. AFL Global will produce 7,600 km of fiber for this project, which the company will produce in its Melbourne factory.
Slattery has founded several companies that operate submarine cable networks (see, for example, “SUB.CO announces Oman Australia Cable to link Australia to EMEA via submarine network” and “Megaport spins off fiber infrastructure”). He announced his intention to expand into terrestrial networks last February (see “HyperOne Australian fiber backbone network planned”), stating the backbone will have a design capacity of more than 10,000 Tbps.
“We are thrilled to have started construction works between Sydney and Melbourne, the two largest centers for cloud in Australia. This will provide much-needed additional capacity between these locations,” Slattery said as part of the fiber network construction announcement. “Importantly, this phase of construction will form the foundation of the project as we push the cloud to other capital cities and parts of regional Australia that also require greater connectivity. Connecting ‘Cloud Alley’ first will ensure that everywhere we build thereafter is able to take advantage of the access and capability.”
The fiber cable AFL Global will produce was selected for maximum protection from environmental hazards, Slattery said. “The cable will have three layers of protection including a termite-protected sheath, rodent-protected inner sheath and a non-metallic armoring to provide even more protection from Australia’s harsh soil conditions. HyperOne will not only be Australia’s first hyperscale backbone, but also Australia’s first 100% ducted or armored backbone,” he explained.