KUALA LUMPUR (April 15): TIME dotCom Berhad announced today its participation in a consortium to build a new submarine cable system that will link Asia and Europe via the Middle East, further enhancing its global footprint.

“Together with 16 international service providers, TIME will construct and maintain the Asia-Africa-Europe-1 (AAE-1) submarine cable system, a high-capacity cable system linking Asia and Europe via the Middle East, supporting burgeoning trade and economic linkages between the three continents,” it said in a statement.

Construction of the cable system is expected to commence in the second quarter of 2014 and TIME’s investment will see the group secure 1.88Tbps of capacity in AAE-1 upon its targeted completion in 2016.

"This is a significant component of our global expansion plans," said TIME’s Chief Executive Officer Afzal Abdul Rahim. "Our global network will span Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Japan and the United States.”

Spanning 25,000 kilometres, the cable system connects Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, India, Pakistan, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Yemen, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Greece and France.

“Our investment in AAE-1 is strategic for a number of reasons,” added Afzal. But he did not state the value of TIME’s investment.

TIME’s existing submarine cable investments include a stake in the Unity Cable System that connects Japan and the US; and the Asia-Pacific Gateway, that links Malaysia to Korea and Japan, expected to be completed next year.