Telecoms groups withdrew investment in Sea-Me-We 6, which will transmit data between Asia and western Europe
The Sea-Me-We 6 consortium, which includes Microsoft, Orange and Telecom Egypt, opted for US company SubCom to build the line rather than the bid from Hengtong Marine — prompting the two Chinese state-owned groups to exit, the people said.
While Sea-Me-We-6 is not the world’s largest international cable, it is similar in length to the Peace cable, laid exclusively by Chinese companies, which spans 21,500km and connects Singapore to France.