Pacific Fibre announces release of invitation to tender

Media Release

6 April, 2011. For Immediate Release

Pacific Fibre announces release of invitation to tender

Pacific Fibre announced today that its Invitation To Tender was released to selected vendors for the Pacific Fibre Cable System connecting Australia to New Zealand and the US. The 5.12 Tbit/sec two fibre pair system, which includes new build cable landing stations in each country, will allow Australian and New Zealand carriers to secure supply of sufficient capacity to take advantage of the NBN and UFB fibre rollout plans.

Mike Constable, Director for Business Development, responsible for leading the build of the cable system, said "This is a significant milestone in the project development phase and shows the momentum Pacific Fibre has built towards achieving its goal. The 450 page document reflects the considerable work we have put into the design and configuration of the cable system and provides the basis of the contract which we expect to execute with a selected vendor in the third quarter this year."

The Invitation To Tender was sent to established leaders in the submarine cable system supply industry. Vendor responses are due in mid-May with contract negotiations expected to commence with a preferred vendor soon after.

Pacific Fibre CEO Mark Rushworth said "We are delighted with the experience and progress that Mike and his team of experts have brought to Pacific Fibre to drive forward the cable design and build process."

Mark also confirmed today that Pacific Fibre is building the cable alone. "A joint build Memorandum of Understanding expired earlier this year, freeing us to move ahead more quickly. We have been assuming a solo-build system for several months now and remain firmly on track to finance and deliver the system in 2013. Our proposed design greatly expands capacity for carriers and multi national businesses, and provides much needed diversity for the region.”

Ends.

About Pacific Fibre

Pacific Fibre was founded in early 2010 and aims to build a new fibre optic cable between Australia, New Zealand and the USA. The company directors and investors include Sam Morgan, Stephen Tindall, Rod Drury, David Kirk, Bill Day, Craig Winkler and Peter Thiel. Pacific Fibre is based in Auckland with an office in Sydney.

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