Information and Communications Technologies Minister Isa Zarepour has announced the conclusion of a contract to increase the capacity of the country's ICT network infrastructure by 70%.
The access layer project has been inaugurated and other departments will also implement major projects in the ICT Ministry and one of them pertains to the country's communications network infrastructure, the ICT minister said on Feb. 14, ICTna.ir reported.
“As the capacity of access layer increases, the transmission layer in cities and provinces should be strengthened by the Telecommunications Company of Iran. Intra-provincial transmission network and its infrastructure should also be developed,” Zarepour said at the launch of the Fiber Optic Network Development Project.
“During a ceremony on Wednesday, the contract for the 70% increase in the country's network infrastructure during a nine-month process using domestic equipment and knowhow [and technologies] will be unveiled,” he added.
The official noted that the capacity of ICT network’s infrastructure will be increased from the current 30 Tbps to 120 Tbps in the next three years.
“Telecommunications Company of Iran is a national asset and should play a role in this national project and work more seriously than before,” he said.
“At the same time, we must use the capacity of private companies and the approval of Bitstream internet to meet everyone’s need in the country for a high-speed fiber-optic network over the next three years.”
Zarepour said the Convergent Network and Service Provider has been approved and the entire ICT sector will help meet the target of 20 million fiber-optic ports.
“The government is looking to set up a stable and secure communications network and we have chosen the most difficult task, which is time-consuming and requires the coordination of different organizations,” he said.
“To develop the fiber-optic network, we agreed to spend 3-5% of the government's share in this project. The government will not receive anything from mobile operators as revenue in this project.”
Fiber-optic internet, commonly called fiber internet or simply “fiber”, is a broadband connection that can reach speeds of up to 940 megabits per second, with low lag time. The technology uses fiber-optic cable, which can send data as fast as 70% of the speed of light.
In addition, fiber-optic cables are not as susceptible to severe weather conditions as other types of traditional cables, which helps minimize outages. It also resists electrical interference effectively, according to Century Link.
NIN Completion in Four Years
ICT Minister Isa Zarepour had earlier declared that the National Information Network project will be completed in four years.
Zarepour noted that NIN is one of the country's largest and vital initiatives, serving as an infrastructure for electronic and smart service development, as well as a powerful platform for the local internet.
“After around two decades of foot-dragging, it is finally time to give the initiative one last push,” he said.
The minister stated that in order to address obstacles to NIN expansion, public education about the network's possibilities, the creation of a content generation chain and the convergence of many sectors to use NIN in their activities would be extremely beneficial.
“Budget specification policies should be changed and project implementation efficiency must be improved, in addition to attracting foreign and private investors and reducing wastage of money and time,” he said.
“Domestic ICT enterprises, mobile operators and tech teams should also play a bigger role in NIN development.”
According to Zarepour, the integrated network will be able to double the present 5% ICT share in Iran's economy and generate a large number of jobs upon its completion.
In December 2020, the ICT Ministry announced that over 80% of NIN’s infrastructure were established.
Former deputy ICT minister, Hamid Fattahi, said the National Information Network’s infrastructure has been developed by up to 80%, through the expansion of fiber optic connections, establishment of communications stations and towers, and a surge in the number of data processing racks and data centers.
“NIN’s components include infrastructure, cyber policies, platforms, ecosystem and content. The development of each helps the completion of the NIN project,” he added.
Officials say the ICT Ministry has put maximum effort into boosting NIN’s performance by expanding the network’s data centers and data processing capacity.
