Undersea-cable growth expected

Undersea-cable growth expected

The amount of fiberoptic cable deployed in undersea systems will increase by nearly 70% over the next five years, according to projections from KMI Corp. (Newport, RI), a market-research firm. The firm`s 1998 Worldwide Summary of Fiberoptic Undersea Systems says that investment in such systems, which stood at $20 billion in 1997, will grow to $51 billion through 2003. Of that, about $12 billion will be invested in the Pacific, the company says. Capacity will grow from 20 million voice circuits to 70 million.