Keppel has signed the last and fifth user for its Bifrost Cable System, less than a month after it announced the fourth customer for the fibre pairs.
Including maintenance revenue, Keppel expects to book total contract value of some US$1.3 billion, or $1.7 billion, over 25 years.
Bifrost, which spans over 20,000 km, is described as the world’s first subsea cable system directly linking Singapore to the west coast of USA via Indonesia through the Java Sea and Celebes Sea.
Keppel says that the five fibre pairs have been committed to a set of diverse customers including major telecommunications operators, leading hyperscalers and global technology companies.
Overall, the Bifrost project is expected to generate an internal rate of return of about 30% for Keppel as well as its private fund investors, the company says.
“The successful commercialisation of all five of Keppel’s fibre pairs on Bifrost is a strong validation of our ability to originate, develop, operate and crystalise value from proprietary digital infrastructure assets," says Manjot Singh Mann, CEO, Connectivity, of Keppel.
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"It demonstrates how our integrated ecosystem creates differentiated connectivity solutions that customers value, while delivering attractive returns to our Limited Partners and Keppel as a co-investor, and generating long-term recurring income through both our asset management and operating platforms," he adds.
Keppel and partners are now pursuing and evaluating two new cable systems, one from Singapore to the Middle East with branches across South Asia, and the other from Singapore to Japan through the South China Sea with branches across Asean.
"By harnessing our capabilities across digital infrastructure, including data centres and power, we are well positioned to support the next wave of AI-driven digital growth," he adds,
