REANNZ welcomes Hawaiki cable project confirmation

The Chair of the REANNZ Board, Jim Donovan, today welcomed the official confirmation that the Hawaiki Cable Project is to proceed, with all investment funding, supply and customer contracts now confirmed.

REANNZ (Research & Education Advanced Network New Zealand) operates New Zealand’s high-performance network, supporting the specific needs of educators, students, researchers and scientists. It is a founding customer of the Hawaiki Cable project.

Mr Donovan said, “There have been a number of attempts to establish a second submarine cable, seeking to further improve New Zealand’s connectivity capability and provide much needed new capacity and diversity of supply.”  

“We are delighted that this long-held vision for New Zealand is now a reality, with the extensive investment and infrastructure funding required now secured, and supply contracts in force,” he added.

REANNZ has seen an exponential rise in traffic on its network with 84% growth in 2014-15, compared with 25% in public internet traffic over the same time period. International, large-scale science projects, such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) are projected to use several times the current global internet traffic in just a few years’ time, and with scientists in New Zealand contributing to these projects, swift, reliable connectivity is essential.

REANNZ CEO Nicole Ferguson said, “The Hawaiki cable project provides REANNZ with the ability to not only meet today’s research and education demand, but to support the needs of the next generation of research, education and innovation. New Zealand researchers and educators require greater access to global content, resources and tools to remain competitive and successful in their respective fields. This makes high-performance international connectivity crucial, to ensure the ongoing success of our members.”

The Hawaiki cable will connect directly to the REANNZ national network, which in turn delivers high-speed access to REANNZ members throughout New Zealand. 

REANNZ has secured an agreement that allows its capacity to grow over time, in line with the projected demand of its membership. REANNZ will also continue to do business with Southern Cross maintaining the strong ties developed over the duration of their partnership.

About REANNZ

Research and Education Advanced Network New Zealand (REANNZ) is a Crown-owned company that owns and operates an ultra-high speed broadband network for New Zealand’s research, education and innovation communities. It connects members in New Zealand with tools, people, applications and data both nationally and internationally.