New submarine cable planned for New Caledonia in 2019

The South Pacific region has become a hub for submarine cable system development in recent years with further networks coming online during 2019/2020. This is expected to increase competition in the region in regards to international capacity and the New Caledonian government plans to hold a tender process in 2019 in order to establish its own international and domestic submarine cable.

New Caledonia’s telecommunications sector is dominated by the government owned OPT-NC which holds a monopoly and provides fixed and mobile voice services, mobile internet, fixed broadband access, and wholesale services for other ISPs.

In 2019 New Caledonia is well serviced by extensive 3G and 4G LTE networks and is considered to have one of the highest smart phone adoption rates in the Pacific Region.

While ADSL is still the dominant fixed broadband technology; the OPTC is also deploying a nationwide FttH network.

BuddeComm notes that the outbreak of the Coronavirus in 2020 is having a significant impact on production and supply chains globally. During the coming year the telecoms sector to various degrees is likely to experience a downturn in mobile device production, while it may also be difficult for network operators to manage workflows when maintaining and upgrading existing infrastructure. Overall progress towards 5G may be postponed or slowed down in some countries.

On the consumer side, spending on telecoms services and devices is under pressure from the financial effect of large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes. However, the crucial nature of telecom services, both for general communication as well as a tool for home-working, will offset such pressures. In many markets the net effect should be a steady though reduced increased in subscriber growth.

Key developments:

• A referendum for independence from France was held in New Caledonia in late 2018 and the majority of voters chose to remain part of France.
• Office des Postes et Télécommunications de Nouvelle-Calédonie (OPT-NC) is the only telecom network operator, but a few private ISPs offer services over OPT-NC's network.
• Any slumps in the nickel sector pricing places strain on New Caledonia's overall economy.
• New Caledonia only has a small population with less than 300,000 citizens.
• Assessment of the global impact of COVID-19 on the telecoms sector.

Companies covered in this report include:

Office des Postes et Télécommunications de Nouvelle-Calédonie (OPT-NC).