KPNQwest's Ebone to go dark?

KPNQwest's Belgium-based Ebone network is preparing to go dark at 4.00pm UK time today.

Volunteer workers who barricaded themselves inside the operations centre for the last eight days claim they are convinced that the best plan is to shut the network down, whatever the outcome of the deal.

The workers yesterday issued an email warning that the network would be shut down unless a buyer was found before 4.00pm UK time.

Graham Kinsey, volunteer press officer for the 100-strong team, admitted today that the sit-in was nearing an end.

"We've been working 20-hour shifts for eight days. We're physically exhausted and almost out of resources," he said.

"We delivered a concrete message yesterday, but today it doesn't look so solid. Most of the workers here are convinced that we should still shut the network down whatever happens."

Kinsey said that a contract has been offered by the administrators to keep 40 people, including himself, at Ebone for another two weeks until a deal can be finalised.

He explained that their union had advised the volunteers to take this deal. Shutting down the network would go against this advice, but Kinsey said that the workers had an "all or nothing" attitude. Everybody stays, or everybody and the network goes.

"There is also some bad blood here from the last time this happened," he said, referring to a similar situation when KPNQwest bought Ebone from GTS in March. "People will have been hired and fired by the same company twice."

Kinsey indicated that the network would probably not last long if it was kept running anyway. "The administrators are trying to get access to the equipment sites to sell of the kit," he said. "If this happens the network will be ripped apart anyway."

Twenty five per cent of European internet traffic runs over the Ebone network, but the results of pulling the plug are somewhat unpredictable.

"Businesses have told us that they will go bankrupt if the network goes down," said Kinsey, adding that there is a chance that shutting the Ebone network would take the KPNQwest network with it.