OREANDA-NEWS. May 5, 2010. OJSC Rostelecom and JSC FGC UES completed construction and launch for commercial operation of the fiber-optic communication link (FOCL) Chelyabinsk-Khabarovsk.

Construction of the FOCL Chelyabinsk-Khabarovsk is the largest project of backbone telecommunications line construction implemented in Russia over the past 10 years, with project investments in excess of 5 billion Russian rubles. The link spans about 10 thousand km across Russia.

The link was implemented using proven technology of optic-fiber ground wire (OPWG) suspended on the towers of electric power lines.

Successful implementation of the project enabled Rostelecom to connect dozens of cities in the Urals, Siberia and Far-East to Rostelecom core DWDM network and therefore to offer advanced telecommunications services to customers. This also opens an opportunity to implement in these regions such socially-significant programs in the area of telecommunications as e-Government and Social Internet.

“Construction of a new communications link signifies an essential part of the program of technical development of Rostelecom’s backbone network, its reliability and high throughput being one of Rostelecom key competitive advantages,” says Rostelecom’s CEO Anton Kolpakov, adding that alongside the technical aspects one should recognize its significance for solving social problems, such as for instance bridging the digital divide between the regions”.

A. Kolpakov also pointed out, that the newly installed link enables Rostelecom to ensure full protection of Rostelecom backbone network using dual geographically diverse paths (ring protection) throughout entire Russia. Thus, the company is capable of offering its telecommunications services with the highest reliability everywhere in Russia. Among other things this will significantly strengthen positions of Rostelecom, and consequently Russia as a whole, in the international telecommunications marketplace, and in particular, will provide an opportunity to draw additional international traffic volume, for instance, transit traffic between Europe and Asia”.

Within the framework of the project implementation JSC FGC UES provided around 10,000 km of power lines on the route of the newly installed FOCL, switched off the power for the duration of the construction and installation and set up maintenance and repair teams for servicing the FOCL.

The project implementation has made it possible for FGC UES to provide digital circuits connecting over 100 electric power engineering sites to ensure operation of automated systems of supervisory, operation control and corporate management. The FOCL Chelyabinsk-Khabarovsk has made a tangible contribution to the deployment of the Unified Supervisory & Operation Management Telecommunications Network, to the replacement of obsolete analog communications facilities with state-of-the-art digital equipment, improvement of the operation reliability of the Unified National Electric Grid (UNEG). Additionally, in the course of the FOCL installation the ground wires on the majority of power lines involved in the project were also replaced, thus facilitating improvement in the reliability of trunk power lines and quality of power supply to customers of the Chelyabinsk-Khabarovsk transit.

“The project is an excellent example of beneficial collaboration between two national companies bringing additional synergy effect through significant savings and efficient resource utilization. Provision of modern telecommunications circuits for major power grid facilities establishes a basis for improved visibility and controllability of the UNEG and creation of a smart power grid”, says Oleg Budargin, President of FGC UES.

Oleg Budargin continued that leveraging the experience gained during the construction of this FOCL both companies intend to enhance their cooperation in deployment of such facilities in the Russian regions, and expand areas of cooperation.