ICN-1: Interchange
- Jonathan Brewer
Interchange's ICN-1 is a public-private partnership between Interchange Limited and the government of Vanuatu, completed in January 2014. The $32m, 1259 km long cable was partly debt-funded, with pre-purchase agreements by Vanuatu's government key to finance arrangements. The Vanuatu National Provident Fund is the largest individual shareholder, with a 37.5% stake. Vanuatu Post and the Government of Vanuatu each hold a 6.25% share, and the other 50% is privately held.
After years of low uptake of bandwidth on the cable, Vanuatu's telecommunications regulator found that the operator and other parties had engaged in anti-competitive conduct. After her 2016 ruling, the regulator was suspended in 2017 by Vanuatu's government. Vanuatu's Supreme Court later found the government's actions in suspending the regulator were unlawful.
Lands at:
- Port Vila, Vanuatu
- Suva, Fiji
Additional Resources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interchange_Cable_Network
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602140318/http://interchange.vu/about/
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141518/http://country.eiu.com/article.aspx?articleid=1231448507&Country=Vanuatu&topic=Economy&subtopic=F_7
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141603/https://www.engadget.com/2011/04/14/south-pacifics-vanuatu-grabbing-fiber-internet-connection-side/?guccounter=1
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141646/http://www.vanuatupost.vu/index.php/en/philately/stamps/under-water-cable/1-32
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141736/http://www.pireport.org/articles/2013/11/28/telecommunications-cable-fiji-arrives-vanuatu
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141838/http://www.fintel.com.fj/pages.cfm/company/news/fiji-vanuatu-telecommunications-cable-system.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141909/http://www.investvanuatu.org/wp/news-n/daily-news/interchange-cs/
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142115/http://dailypost.vu/news/the-cable-ties-that-bind/article_4eb49c94-8636-5282-bfa3-d2cc2befa1e6.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142242/http://dailypost.vu/news/trr-suspended/article_0cf79139-6562-55ef-8fe9-40df543e6dc3.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142600/http://dailypost.vu/news/pm-must-not-interfere-with-telecoms-regulator/article_d3965cfb-c076-5992-b70b-0ae651b0e434.html