Telxius’ BRUSA Achieves 160 Tbps with Ciena’s WaveLogic 5

BRUSA submarine cable achieves record network performance accomplishing 550 Gbps channel speeds across 10,200 kilometers

Telxius’ BRUSA cable successfully reached record 550 Gbps single-wavelength channel speeds during an advanced trial leveraging Ciena's WaveLogic 5 Extreme (WL5e) coherent optical solution. In addition, a commercially deployable solution for a total capacity of more than 20 Tbps on a single fiber pair was verified.

With WaveLogic 5 Extreme, the BRUSA cable is now able to reach a total transmission capacity of more than 160 Tbps. This record-breaking trial has demonstrated how the BRUSA network can prepare for increasing connectivity demands from telecom operators, OTT services and other requirements driven by high-bandwidth applications.

BRUSA is the highest capacity submarine cable connecting the Americas. It was opened for business in August 2018 and stretches approximately 10,200 kilometers between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Virginia Beach, USA. BRUSA enables ultra-high broadband services, improves communication reliability, overall network performance and provides direct access to internet exchanges in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.

During the trial, the BRUSA network experienced record connectivity speeds powered by Ciena’s WaveLogic 5 Extreme, the industry’s first programmable 800G solution. WaveLogic 5 Extreme was used on the BRUSA cable to provide greater scale and increased economic efficiencies and deliver 50 percent more capacity per wavelength.

Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme, based on WaveLogic 5 Extreme coherent optics, also demonstrated how BRUSA can benefit from open cable network designs, rapid scalability, and a lower total cost of network ownership.

“WaveLogic 5 Extreme opens the door to a more scalable submarine network, which can support our customers as they continue to embrace new technologies that require unprecedented levels of bandwidth. This remarkable achievement is another example of how our collaboration with Ciena enables us to not only visualize what’s possible for our network, but to turn those possibilities into reality,” stated Carlos Dasi, Telxius’ Cable CTO.

“Completing this trial showcases how WaveLogic 5 Extreme, which is an integral part of Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme network solution, raises the bar in coherent optical technology and demonstrates how Telxius’ current network can be transformed to provide an even more superior digital experience for their customers,” said Rodolfo Vigliano, Ciena’s Senior Managing Director of Sales.

Telxius is the global infrastructure company of the Telefónica Group, with one of the largest telecommunication sites portfolio in the world. Its more than 20,000 sites are located in Europe and Latin America: 70% in Spain and Germany, and the remaining 30% in Brazil, Peru, Chile and Argentina.

In addition, Telxius operates an international network of 87,000 km of high-capacity fiber optic submarine cable, including the two largest capacity systems in the world, MAREA and BRUSA. Telxius provides flexible solutions for its clients, contributes to creating collaboration agreements in the sector and facilitates global communications to companies from many sectors and verticals.