The first undersea fiber optic cable linking the Chinese mainland to the main island of Taiwan is set to be operational in 2013, the telecom operator China Union said Tuesday.
This is the third telecom communication cable linking the mainland and Taiwan after two others were completed in August linking Xiamen, Fujian Province, and Jinmen, a Taiwan-administered county some two kilometers off the mainland.
The new 270-kilometer-long cable is jointly invested by the three largest mainland telecom operators of China Unicom, China Mobile and China Telecom, and Taiwan's Far Eastone, Taiwan Mobile, Taiwan International Cable Network and Chunghwa Telecom.
Once completed, it will create a link between Fuzhou and Tamsui, Taipei county, following the same route as the first cross-Straits submarine telegraph cable built in 1887.
"By using 16 core optic fibers and no-trace transmission technology, the cable can operate with a capacity of 6.4 terabytes per second, or simultaneously transmit 1.6 million high-definition television channels," said Hu Xingzheng, a head of China Unicom's Fujian branch.
Chen Wen-ray, president of the Taiwan International Cable Network, said the cable will provide both sides with improved and less expensive service.
Landmark building should respect the public's feeling