Samarinda, July 3rd, 2020. PT XL Axiata Tbk (XL Axiata) strongly commits to supporting the telecommunication infrastructure development in East Kalimantan. One of the projects that are currently undergoing development is the telecommunications networking and data throughout the Balikpapan - Samarinda Toll Road (Tol Balsam), officiated by Indonesian President, Joko Widodo in December 17th, 2019. About over 190 XL Axiata’s BTS is fully operating and serving users/commutes on the 99.35 km long, first-ever built toll road in Kalimantan.
Acting XL Axiata’s Chief Technology Officer, I Gede Darmayusa states, “Ever since the Indonesian government officially declared the soon-to-be new capital city to be located in Kalimantan, we’ve been diligently focused on East Kalimantan’s infrastructure’s preparation and the telecommunication network ecosystem. With the Balsam Toll Road in service, it will not only be vital to the public mobility but also supportive of the upcoming development of the new capital, North of the Penajam Paser region. Therefore, we relentlessly continue to build and develop networks alongside the Balsam Toll, with hopes of it to maximally fulfill consumers’ needs”.
As of now, the Balsam Toll Road users can access and enjoy network service provided by XL Axiata, supported by more than 190 BTS, in which 80 of them support 4G LTE services. According to I Gede Darmayusa, the toll road development will carry on along with the customer needs, as well as the nearby public use.
In the meantime, XL Axiata’s networking services covers 9 cities/districts in East Kalimantan, fully supported by at least 2,200 BTS, 890 BTS among support 4G LTE services. Within East Kalimantan, Balikpapan, Samarinda, Bontang, Berau, Kutai Timur, Kutai Barat, Kutai Kartanegara, Paser, and North Penajam Paser are now fully supported by XL Axiata’s data network. Furthermore, XL Axiata is set to develop the telecommunication networking infrastructure accordingly as planned by the government by building an extended toll road 60 km, connected to the Balsam Toll, linking North Penajam Paser and Kutai Kartanegara.
The Kalimantan Fiberization Network
XL Axiata is also intensively working on the fiberization project throughout Kalimantan. Up until now, there are more than 5,000 km of fiber optic networks, taking up to 212 BTS. Other than that, XL Axiata plans to add another 4,500 km of fiber optic networks all around Indonesia by the end of 2020. Technically speaking, fiberization is a modern method of networking by channeling the network through the Base Transceiver Station (BTS) by fiber optics, including regenerating BTS devices, such as replacing devices that have been using microwaves to fiber devices.
This fiberization program is also a greater step to commencing XL Axiata’s 5G network in the near future. As today's sophisticated networking tech, 5G offers lightning speed (full-speed) internet connection, allowing more user capacity, and minimum delays or latencies. Its' use is also expected to encourage various economic sectors in Indonesia to move or grow faster. This
technological advantage can only be obtained if the site or BTS is connected to fiber optics.
Some of XL Axiata’s services in Kalimantan are also supported by networks built with the Universal Service Obligation (USO) scheme. There are approximately 66 BTS USO in Kalimantan, each of them located in Ketapang 11 BTS, Bengkayang 4 BTS, Landak 3 BTS, Kayong Utara 1 BTS, Sambas 2 BTS and in Sanggau 8 BTS, Tabalong 7 BTS, Kapuas Hulu 3 BTS, Melawi 3 BTS, Seruyan 2 BTS and Sintang 22 BTS.
In the first quarter of 2020, 1.3 million customers are recorded in the system, with more than 99% active data customers, increasing by about 25% from the same period last year. It’s predicted that the number of customers will grow widespread of XL Axiata’s 4G LTE network, not to mention the expansion of public knowledge regarding the utilization of advanced data services, be it in cities or small rural areas.
XL Axiata continues to expand and improve the quality of its network throughout Indonesia. By the end of March 2020, XL Axiata owns more than 133,000 BTS, 43 among them already categorized as 4G BTS. XL Axiata’s 4G services are accessible and serving customers within 449 cities and districts, spread across various regions in Indonesia. Meanwhile, XL Axiata network fiberization has been carried out in all provincial capitals and large cities, especially in cities or areas where data growth urgently requires upgrading to fiber networks. As for now, there are 53% of finished fiberization projects in 2020, expanded to big cities such as Jakarta, Surabaya, Semarang, Medan, Bandung, Palembang, Makassar, and Balikpapan. In advance, fiberization is now a growing progress within densely populated areas to support activities in the new normal era at this time.