Liquid and Nokia to deploy transport network technology

06 March 2023

Liquid Intelligent Technologies has partnered with Nokia to deploy its innovative transport network technology in the new terrestrial fibre route connecting Mombasa, Kenya to Johannesburg, South Africa.

This announcement comes considering the imminent launch of the new terrestrial data superhighway built by Liquid. The technology has allowed Liquid to build its first terrestrial route that will provide 12Tb of capacity for carriers and service providers in South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the DRC. The route, which measures 16,576km, has been designed to cater to the demand for more capacity from Liquid’s hyperscale customers.

“As a business of Cassava Technologies, Liquid is committed to enabling a digitally connected future for every business and individual in Africa. We are proud to partner with Nokia as we expand our high-speed fibre backbone on the continent. This investment further demonstrates our commitment towards Africa’s inclusive digital transformation,” said Hardy Pemhiwa, group president and CEO of Cassava Technologies.

The route will provide thousands of businesses and millions of households in many of Africa’s landlocked cities, towns and villages with more resilient connectivity and access to numerous data centres and cloud resources.

“Nokia’s next-generation optical network will enable Liquid Intelligent Technologies to maintain its leadership position and emerge as a preferred partner of organizations requiring massive capacity. We are delighted that our technology and expertise will help Liquid Intelligent Technologies provide the best-in-class digital infrastructure to Africa’s enterprises and will play a role in strengthening the digital infrastructure of the continent,” said Rajiv Aggarwal, head of Central East and West Africa (CEWA) market unit at Nokia.

“Internet giants, established cloud service providers and other mega-organisations are demanding hyperscale data centres that can support high levels of performance, spikes in demand, and redundancy while enabling massive availability. Our new terrestrial fibre corridor is the first of its kind in Africa in terms of distance and capacity,” said Shahzad Manzoor Khan, group chief technology officer, Liquid Intelligent Technologies.