Huawei, Qtel extend FTTH contract

Huawei and Qtel have expanded partnership to implement the phase II project of the carrier's national rollout of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) ultra broadband network infrastructure. The project will provide 90,000 additional connections. This FTTH network will cover all the territory of the country and provide network access to the entire population at a downstream speed of up to 100Mbps.

With the help of Huawei's SingleFan solution, Qatar's broadband coverage will be closer to 100% of households and businesses within two years and this network will offer better user experience in online education and entertainment.

Since its cooperation with Qtel in its phase I FTTH project in 2010, Huawei has helped Qtel to deploy the fiber access broadband network in Qatar. "Thanks to its insights into Qtel's network conditions and business development, Huawei won the carrier's FTTH Phase II contract. Huawei will provide a Turnkey solution which integrates the central equipment room, optical distribution nodes (ODNs), optical line supervision (OLS), optical access equipment, and other equipment," said a press release.

Qtel's COO Walled Mahamed al-Sayed said, "It is an important strategic alliance that will contribute to the growth and development of Qatar, making it one of the best-connected countries in the world. The rollout of these additional 90,000 connections has already begun. We have already laid fiber passing 126,000 homes, have connected 30,000 homes to the fiber network and 10,000 households are already enjoying the fiber services."