center3 is the result of stc Group’s vision that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be the heart of all international data connectivity crossing and connecting three continents (Europe, Asia, and Africa) and a data hub for the MENA region. By offering cutting-edge communication and hosting technologies and expanding data center capacity, the company seeks to expand its digital business, boosting investment opportunities in global communication services and data centers.
In a recent interview with Fahad Al Hajeri, CEO of Centre 3, Economy Middle East discussed Centre3’s participation in Capacity Middle East 2023 in Dubai, as well as the company’s key submarine cable projects.
Read more: stc Group launches Center3 to enhance digital economy growth in Saudi
The following is a transcript of the interview:
What is the nature of center3’s participation in the Middle East Capacity Conference in Dubai 2023?
Through our participation in this year’s Capacity Conference, we aim to strengthen center3’s position in the ICT sector, as it is the Middle East gateway for large companies, content service providers, companies, operators, and international carriers.
The company supports various partners within the group through a network of data centers and integrated solutions that ensure smooth and reliable communication between the region and the world. The company works through the submarine fiber optic network to provide exceptional services to customers.
We work to develop digital businesses and enhance investment opportunities in international communication services and data centers by providing the latest communication and hosting technologies and raising the capacity of data centers to accommodate the needs of markets in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the rest of the world.
What are your most prominent submarine cable projects?
center3 and stc Bahrain have recently completed the Africa 2 Pearl marine survey of the Africa 2 submarine cable project in Bahrain. Africa 2 is a unique connectivity system that links 3 continents and includes 46 landing stations across 33 countries, enhancing the role of the Gulf region among the countries of the world. Africa 2 is expected to be the world’s longest submarine cable with a length of 45,000 kilometers and will provide secure and reliable communications services across the continents via which it passes thanks to the addition of landing stations in Saudi, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Pakistan, and India. Connecting the Kingdom of Bahrain through Africa 2 Pearl will accelerate the digital transformation of GCC countries, as this advanced technology provides fast connectivity that helps elevate the sector in the region as a whole, accelerate economic growth, encourage innovation, and enhance cooperation with countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
We have kept investing in telecommunications infrastructure through center3 since its inception to provide exceptional customer services and contribute to the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. center3 seeks to connect third-world continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe, thus strengthening the company’s position and consolidating its leading role in the telecommunications sector in the region, as well as strengthening the Middle East’s position as a well-established regional center in the field of communications and information technology.
Agreements’ signing
center3, a subsidiary of the Group, has also signed several agreements, including a partnership agreement with Neutrality. One is to build a presence point in Jeddah and support the expansion of the MENA market by providing hosting and data services to the local and international customer point of presence (PoP) in Jeddah.
In addition, a partnership agreement with Kaopu Cloud supports the expansion of the center3 cloud services in the Kingdom via hosting and data services, which will enable it to provide advanced cloud services to improve the performance of consumer applications. The agreement also aims to increase the localization of content, which consolidates the Kingdom’s position as a leading digital hub in the region.
Furthermore, center3 signed a third partnership agreement with Zenlayer to support its global expansion and enable it to provide advanced cloud services to content providers wishing to localize their services.
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