HFCL starts production of FTTH cables from Hyderabad plant

Hyderabad: HFCL on Thursday said it has begun the commercial production of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) cables from its new facility in Hyderabad, involving a fresh outlay of Rs 40 crore.

HFCL further said, Rs 300 crore has so far been invested in the Hyderabad facility as part of the company's expansion roadmap. The company said in a statement that it has become the largest manufacturer of FTTH cables in India with a capacity of 6 lakh kms/annum.

"HFCL's new FTTH cable manufacturing facility at Hyderabad, Telangana, has commenced commercial production of optical fiber cables for fiber-to-home applications, with effect from December 16, 2020," according to the statement. With this new facility, HFCL, along with its subsidiary company HTL Limited, has become the largest manufacturer of FTTH cables in India with a capacity of 6 lakh kms per annum.

The company had earlier invested Rs 260 crore in the Hyderabad plant for the manufacturing of optical fiber that was commissioned in January 2020. "This new, automated high-speed FTTH cable facility has come up with a fresh outlay of Rs 40 crore to ensure high throughput, economies of scale and highest quality standards," it said. So far, Rs 300 crore has been infused in Hyderabad facility as part of the expansion roadmap. Mahendra Nahata, Managing Director, HFCL said, "India is seeing buoyant FTTH activity driven by private telcos and government's thrust on rural network deployment. Expanding FTTH rollouts will not only boost our country's 4G connectivity but it will also enhance our readiness for 5G".

The FTTH cable plant has backward integration for supplies of major raw materials including optical fiber from the company's existing manufacturing facilities, further strengthening the supply chain.

"Apart from supplying FTTH cables to telecom service providers in India, HFCL will also be exporting them to more than 30 countries where the company is already having its presence. The company will be marketing the FTTH cables under its brand name of HFCL," the statement said. It added that the company's research and development facilities are developing different variants of new cables which would also be manufactured from the newly set up facility at Hyderabad. HFCL Limited (formerly Himachal Futuristic Communications Limited) is a technology enterprise engaged in manufacturing of high-end transmission and access equipment, optical fiber, optical fiber cables (OFC), with focus on setting up modern communication network for telecom service providers, railways, defence, smart city and surveillance projects.