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Uninett, a non-profit company delivering telecom and data network connections to Norwegian universities and research institutions, has announced Global Marine Systems as the contracted provider of a new subsea cable that will service the research community of Ny-Ålesund.

Uninett’s high speed research and education network connects more than 200 Norwegian educational and research institutions and their more than 300,000 users, and links them to international research networks.

The Ny-Ålesund research station supports earth and life scientists and is part of an international research community that includes stations owned by Norway, Germany, Japan, Italy, France and the UK.

The station is the world’s northern most research community.

Global Marine Systems, a company that specializes in the installation and maintenance of subsea cables, previously installed the world’s most northerly commercial fibre optic cable.

The company has unparalleled expertise in cable routing, system engineering and cable protection requirements in the arctic environment.

“Global Marine, with its expertise in provision of cable networks in difficult environments, was a natural choice for the Ny-Ålesund contract,” stated Helge Stranden, Uninett’s Project Manager. “The company has demonstrated their unequaled ability to support cable routing decisions and to provide cable installation services within the challenges this network presents in this high-latitude location.”

“Global Marine Systems has a great track record installing subsea cable systems in the Arctic Circle, having previously installed cables from the Svalbard archipelago to the Norwegian mainland,” stated Andrew Lloyd, Director of Installation for Global Marine Systems. “We have a strong appreciation for the unique challenges presented in connecting one of the world’s northernmost settlements, and look forward to working with Uninett in the successful expansion of the research network to the Ny-Ålesund station.”

Press Release, October 21, 2013