Redacted report reveals little to justify subsea cable
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Government has released a heavily redacted outline business case, compiled by consultants Grant Thornton, on the government’s plans for a new telecommunications submarine cable. Key details have all been omitted, such as costs (estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars), its length and where it will be linked to.
The report also assumes that one or both of the existing cables could be decommissioned, though the authors did not consult Cable and Wireless, which is part of the consortium that owns the MAYA-1 linking these islands to the region.
The redacted report concludes that with no “certain prospect of a private sector operator” building a new undersea cable, there is a “valid argument for CIG to intervene” to ensure resilience for Cayman’s international connectivity.
However, the redactions block figures that might show costs to build and manage the new cable as well as details of its proposed destination, making it hard for the public to see the justification for it. The report also makes a number of assumption that don’t appear to have been checked, such as whether or not it was likely that one or both of the existing cables would be decommissioned. It appears that the consultants did not ask the owners.
CNS made an FOI request to see the report in December last year after the ministry refused to answer our questions on the subject. The request was initially denied but CNS made a further request for an internal review, afterwhich the ministry agreed to release a redacted version of the report. However, it then took two months for the report to finally be made public, making a mockery of the comment in a press release that its publication marked “a significant step in its ongoing commitment to transparency and accountability”.
Even though the report was released in response to an FOI request by CNS, we were not given the usual courtesy of receiving the report before it was released more broadly to all other media houses. Because our FOI request has still not been answered formally, CNS has submitted a complaint to the Office of the Ombudsman about how it was handled and requested an appeal for the release of the full document.
In the unredacted elements of the report, the consultants made several recommendations to government. The first is that it proceeds with the project to secure at least one, if not two, new international subsea cables, though no price has been placed on either.
They also recommend creating and staffing a government-owned cable company, sponsored chiefly by the Infrastructure Ministry, supported by a cross-CIG sponsor board, which would develop the preferred approach for delivery and key financial constraints, among others issues.
However, the document provides little assurance to the public that the investment of tens of millions of dollars would result in better, more secure or cheaper communication services for residents or local businesses. Since government began discussing the proposal, Cable and Wireless has stated publicly that the project is pointless. The telecom firm said the current network has the capacity to manage even a five-fold increase in traffic.
Nevertheless, the PACT administration picked up the project from the PPM-led administration, and the current minister, Jay Ebanks, appears to be enthusiastic about it.
“The Cayman Islands Subsea Cable Project is more than an infrastructure initiative; it’s a commitment to our future,” he stated. “By releasing this business case to the public, we are underscoring our dedication to transparency, accountability, and our unwavering belief in the power of digital connectivity to drive progress. I am confident that this project will serve as a lighthouse, guiding our islands towards
unprecedented growth and connectivity.”
However, CNS has learned that government is now divided on going forward with the plans after findings by its own working group indicated that the cost may be far higher than suggested in this redacted report. The government has already spent several million dollars on the project, including on this outline business case and other preparation work on the proposal, as well as contracting a number of other consultants and hiring new staff.
See the redacted report in the CNS Library.
- Fascinated
- Happy
- Sad
- Angry
- Bored
- Afraid
SpongeBob is going to be pissed if this goes ahead.
“REDACTED”
Whenever we see any document which has deleted / redacted parts we know those parts are parts which expose government corruption.
This new cable like the PPM iniated Dart ReGen project to make BILLIONAIRES richer on the backs of Caymanians.
In a twist of irony, thanks to decades of Cabinet-endorsed conspiracies to conceal >KYD$3Bln in unfunded Balance Sheet healthcare and pension liabilities, the CIG will soon be forced to introduce levels of taxation to comply with FFR, that will repel professional capital and terminate the Cayman Islands as a financial centre. The remaining 20,000 or so residents that can’t or won’t leave, will have ample bandwidth and cheap (uninsurable) housing soon enough.
Just allow Starlink to operate here
Don’t tell anybody, but Starlink works fine here, you just gotta buy it somewhere else…
Don’t tell anyone, but Starlink works here. You just need to buy it somewhere else and activate there, then bring here.
Imma give yo a clue. The guys that own c3, logic, digicel, Salt, signus, Kirk’s and probably any other IT or ISP business on island. C&W can’t be bought. Public company. Owned by real shareholders, regulated by a real stock exchange (not CSX).
Funny how when Caymanians realise the money is to be made how quickly the cogs of government turn.
Wonderland.
NO to a government owned Internet communications company, unless you want to be spied upon, vote NO!
It’s all very Orwellian. And Orwell never ends well.
History shows that when governments are given this kind of access, to control end to end communications involving the public (that’s you and I), it’s going to be abused by eavesdropping, those in control, elected to ‘run the country’ can’t help it, big brother is watching. It’s an overwhelming sense of power that some politicians become entitled to, while others want for from the start.
Remember; “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely”.
Would be cheaper to launch our own satellite.
There is literally no down side to this project. The money won’t get spent better on a different project. There is literally no downside to another cable.
A consultant giving an ambiguous business case and overcharging for it? Say it aint so! – Maybe Govt can start a ‘-5’ list wherein if you produce a junk report like this you get -5 on your next contract bid assessment, to encourage consultants to give actual value for money useful reports that don’t leave people arguing over what they think it said and whether its right or not.
It’s pretty unambiguous. Guess if you are hired to provide an outline business case and you report that there isn’t any justification for the pet project, or it’s not worth the money, you either don’t get paid or you never get another CIG project.
Actually, “the consultants made several recommendations to government. The first is that it proceeds with the project” – Yet somehow you got that the report suggests there is no justification and not worth the money. – That’s two diametrically opposed positions so the very definition of ambiguous. i.e., consultants speaking out of both sides of their mouth, say it aint so.
Unless you think the report said ‘this is a waste of time and money, do it anyway’. Which would be pretty impressive.
Even if it gave figures, the figures would be worthless. “Figures” were given for the Admin Building, the high school, and the airport terminal. The “figures” did not even come close to the actual final costs.
So government wants to get into the telecommunications cable business? Seriously? I damn well hope they do a better job with that they have done with the national radar. If not, we better start raising carrier pigeons. Makes me anxious for StarLink to commence coverage in the Cayman Islands.
Don’t tell anyone, but Starlink works fine here. You just gotta buy it somewhere else…
Starlink is transformative for remote rural areas where fibre will never be available, but it’s not infallible. It does briefly buffer and go offline from time to time if there are dense obstructions like clouds, buildings, tree canopy. The constellation is perishable tech somewhat exposed to vagaries of solar/space weather, and future conflicts.
@8:01:
However, for a business, it is a good backup for those God-only-knows-how-many-times government’s cable link will go down. [Think “National Radar” for a hint of government’s tech track record.]
It would be good to see a comparison made leasing satellite bandwidth.
As with every project like this there is a needle to be threaded between the economic requirements of the territory and getting value for money. Too often, these projects are clouded by the spectre of cronyism and corruption.
If we can get the transactional aspects right and prevent any siphoning off of public assets, then there is no question that Cayman needs the best communications it can get. And subsea cables have ruled telecoms since the days of Brunel.
why is cayman always hiding stuff?
Backhanders.
Theft and dishonesty is the default setting for convicted criminals serving as parliamentarians. It’s rewarding to conspire to/and commit fraud without expectation of recourse. No agency they have appointed has so far been willing to do anything about enforcing NOLAN principles, let alone our Gazetted laws. Cayman’s votership is overwhelmingly unsophisticated, cheering on any member that fights against the provision of civil rights of minority Caymanians. It’s the only topic that riles, or is met with public-funded challenge. Crime is stable.
clear as mud…
but nothing new to these grimey mystery money islands…
Hopefully you do not reside in “these grimey mystery money islands”. Otherwise you should explain why, if you have such a low opinion of them.
Over KYD$3Bln in hidden corrupt dishonest reasons, among other things.
Was the recently appointed OFreg Board, specifically chosen with this APPROVAL in mind? Given the makeup and subsequent enthusiastic advocacy of many of its members for its use-case and “need”, when chatting in their social circles?
Just asking for a friend …..
Kickback capital of the world
This all seems very dubious, why would our government be contending with private telecom providers? Cable costs and endpoints are redacted so the case for this benefiting customers here doubtful. Maybe the ringleader in this scheme, Mr. Jay needs be schooled in what transparency means. More likely it benefits certain individuals in government specifically in Cabinet. Maybe the ringleader in this scheme, Mr. Jay needs be schooled on how “transparency” and “redacted” both relate to each other. After all, it’s our money you’re using the fund this scheme Mr. Jay so you could at least allow us to see what we’re paying for before we hand you a blank cheque.
New reliable sea cables are required. Save the theatrics …
Maybe so but then be open and up front with the details, especially when spending tax funds to do so.
I really don’t see how CNS can say “little to justify subsea cable”.
First, it will require consultants to get it off the ground, or under the sea, and there is no better consultant than your cronies.
Secondly, a Board will have to be established to run it. Who gets to appoint the Chairman and Members of the Board at exorbitant salaries?
Any other questions?
“Cui Bono Fuisset” – It has been the same for thousands of years. If you want to understand the ‘business case’ for this type of government expenditure, look at our politicians and ask which of them benefits.
CIG’s Theme Song: No Money, No Money No Money
yet, over a billion dollars is spent each year, but on what??? And who got paid?
Shhh, don’t tell them about Starlink.
Ofreg doesn’t allow Starlink in Cayman. Wonder why. Couldn’t possibly be because of the competition it would provide, could it? With Ofreg meant to be there to protect the consumer and all.
OfReg requires that it be licensed.
Don’t tell anybody but Starlink works fine here. Just buy it overseas and bring it over.
Should tell Grant Thornton. Could give away 10000 sets for free for way less than installing an underwater cable or 2! as GT suggests) – hell CIG could even pay the $1800 a year unlimited data fees for less than its going to cost to run the new ministry set up to manage the cable! GTs own numbers show the bandwidth available from the current 5 – 10 satellites accessible would exceed the demand given the demand per head they show from islands comparable to Cayman, and Musk is putting more and more satellites up all the time. But that wouldn’t create an excuse for a major procurement or a new opportunity for another ministry and even more civil servants, would it.
Usually when you have to hide the information it is because you can’t possibly justify the business case.
Can’t manage a glass crusher, wants new sub sea cable.
at 8.03 Dart ran the glass crusher
at 8.03 Dart ran the glass crusher.
@8:03:
Can’t manage a radar installation, wants new sub sea cable.
The recurring spectacle of Cayman Islands errant policy really just comes down to who stands to get paid. Apply that greed decoder to every department where procurement choices are being made with public funds. What is less understood is the riddle of why there is no follow-up investigation, public recourse, or arrests for those serial tacticians that we know are doing this.
Secret Lodge handshakes, let’s see who will stand to benefit surely won’t be the average person in Cayman. This is a vanity project that will cost a lot of money for no real gain. It would be better to spend this money on education. Check to see who is pushing this agenda and what they will gain from controlling the bandwidth on this Island.
for the why no follow up etc.. see the first part of your post
Government’s own report spells it out clearly
“ The redacted report concludes that with no “certain prospect of a private sector operator” building a new undersea cable, there is a “valid argument for CIG to intervene” to ensure resilience for Cayman’s international connectivity.”
Hope you’re not hoping for better because I can guarantee it won’t improve but their rates will still go up.
Who in the private sector is pushing for this project?
Follow the money
WE need it and we have the money so Honorable Premier and associates, just build it. Look at all the high paying jobs we will get from this venture. This government is the best ever!
CIG should make a minimal contribution to the project. There is no need to waste over 100m on anything they clearly to not have the expertise in managing
This cannot a be financial proority for Juliana’s dream team. Somebody sponsoring certain politicians is looking to get paid handsomely by using CIG’s funding as usual to achieve the potential financial windfall for a select group of Caymanian oligarchs.
The way technology is advancing, there will soon be no need for an undersea cable, as all comms will be in the airwaves. Anyone looking to do a cable is likely seeking a way to skim funds out of governments. And linking us to failed nations and states, well who’s rubbish idea was that ? So when Colombia and Honduras can’t pay their share, who has to step in ? C’mon Cayman, have some sense.
Cables will always be required – sorry but that is the way it is – no matter how good satellites are they can never replace the capacity that you get on a cable.
massively incorrect.
massively incorrect about the airwaves.
Lets wait till their is a full moon and we can sit on our donkeys and think it over.
9.30 Stop smoking that stuff man.
if you want competition start with CUC FFS.
This project is an absolute necessity. We need diversity, and the private sector is not able to provide it. C&W/Liberty will obviously say it’s unnecessary because they stand to lose revenue once additional competition is brought to market. You can never have too much redundancy.
Just do it!
Without even knowing how much it will cost? Get the benefits of redundancy, but at any price?
This idea smells to high heaven.
Government creating, staffing and operating a sub-sea cable company?
Who and what is really the driving force behind this?