Hawaiki Boosts Subsea Network with Ciena’s WaveLogic 5

Hawaiki Submarine Cable LP will deploy Ciena’s WaveLogic™ 5 Extreme technology delivering a critical network upgrade to support customers facing surging demand for more capacity and speed due to COVID-19.

Hawaiki owns and operates the 15,000km Hawaiki Transpacific Cable, the largest in ultimate system capacity, with the fastest wavelength rate in the region, connecting Australia, New Zealand, American Samoa, Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast.

Earlier this year, Hawaiki announced a network upgrade using Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme solution to improve reliability, availability and deliver lower latency between Oregon and Hawaii.

The WaveLogic 5 Extreme upgrade announced today delivers significant channel speed increases, lower latency, greater scale and increased economic efficiencies. Deployed using the Waveserver 5 platform, the technology works by dramatically reducing cost per bit with fewer wavelengths to install and manage, while its capabilities for network monitoring and programing mean networks can quickly adjust to traffic fluctuations and optimize capacity across any path.

“As we continue to see unprecedented demand for more connectivity, including a significant increase driven by the global pandemic, it was essential for Hawaiki to further expand its network capabilities to better serve the market,” said Rémi Galasso, CEO and Founder, Hawaiki. “Ciena has delivered outstanding results during our trial and this new upgrade makes Hawaiki the first subsea operator in the South Pacific Trans-Oceanic region to achieve 500Gbps wavelengths.”

Hawaiki will also deploy Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) domain controller, which will deliver greater control and visibility of the network, making it easier to preempt and prevent service disruptions.

“Hawaiki continues to push the envelope by upgrading their network to significantly increase the wavelength channel speeds,” said Rick Seeto, Vice President and General Manager of APJ, Ciena. “This will enable the continued delivery of innovative capacity solutions that will drive socio-economic benefits for businesses and consumers across the Pacific region.”

Hawaiki boasts an impressive and growing list of customers connected the Transpacific Cable, including Amazon Web Services, Vodafone New Zealand and others, together accounting for around 350 million users.

“While we continue to increase our market share, this latest network upgrade with Ciena will enable us to sharpen our connectivity solution and better support our customers evolving requirements in this increasingly digital world,” added Hawaiki’s Galasso.

Hawaiki Submarine Cable LP, headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, owns and operates the Hawaiki submarine cable system (Hawaiki).

Hawaiki is the first and only carrier-neutral submarine cable linking Australia, New Zealand, American Samoa, Hawaii and Oregon, on the U.S. west coast.