Pakistan-China Fiber Optic Project

The Pakistan-China Fiber Optic Project is an 820 kilometer long optical fiber cable laid down between the Khunjerab Pass on the China-Pakistan border and the city of Rawalpindi. It has been constructed as part of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor at an estimated cost of $44 million.[1] Groundbreaking on the project took place on May 19, 2016, in the city of Gilgit.[2] The line was first envisaged in 2009,[3] with Pakistan and China signing an agreement in 2013 to implement the project .[4] However the project was not implemented until being included as part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. Placement of the line will take an estimated 2 years, and will bring 3G and 4G connectivity to the Gilgit-Baltistan region.[5]

The line will connect the Transit Europe-Asia Terrestrial Cable Network with that of Pakistan,[6] which currently transmits its telecom and internet traffic through four undersea fiber optic cables, with another three undersea fiber optic cables under construction.[7]

466.54 kilometers of the route will be located in Gilgit-Baltistan, while 287.66 kilometers will be laid in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, 47.56 kilometers will be in Punjab province, and 18.2 kilometers in Islamabad Capital Territory.[8] which will be extended to Gwadar.[9][10]

The project is financed by the Exim Bank of China at a concessionary interest rate of 2%, versus the 1.6% typical of other CPEC infrastructure projects.[11]

The project has been completed and inaugurated in July 2018.[12]

References
  1. "India Snubbed: Pak-China Initiate CPEC Project in Gilgit-Baltistan". The Quint. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  2. "PM inaugurates Pakistan-China Fiber Optic project". The News. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  3. Khan, Mehwish (19 May 2016). "Pakistan To Deploy Fiber Optic Cable to Connect with China". ProPakistani. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  4. "PM performs groundbreaking of Pak-China optic fiber project". Dunya News. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  5. "India Snubbed: Pak-China Initiate CPEC Project in Gilgit-Baltistan". The Quint. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  6. "PM performs groundbreaking of Pak-China optic fiber project". Dunya News. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  7. "Pakistan to Get $44 Million Fiber Optic Back Haul to Link with China". ProPakistani. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  8. "Pakistan to Get $44 Million Fiber Optic Back Haul to Link with China". ProPakistani. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  9. "Optic fibre cable connecting Pakistan, China to be inaugurated today". The Express Tribune. 13 July 2018.
  10. "China builds Digital Silk Road in Pakistan to Africa and Europe". asia.nikkei.com. NIKKEI Asia. 29 January 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  11. Naveed Butt (3 September 2015). "Economic corridor: China to extend assistance at 1.6 percent interest rate". Business Recorder. Archived from the original on 2 January 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  12. "Pak-China fibre optic cable to start functioning by year-end". The Express Tribune. 15 September 2018.
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