Ltd. said yesterday its Tyco Submarine Systems Ltd. unit and Siemens AG's Norddeutsche Seekabelwerke unit signed a contract with CEN-TA Telecom and the New World Network to supply and install a fibre-optic cable system valued at $300 million.

The 5,000-mile system, called Arcos 1, will connect the United States with parts of the Caribbean and Latin America. It is expected to be completed in the spring of next year.

Separately, Tyco said it signed a $16 million contract with Irish telecommunications provider Esat Telecom Ltd. for an undersea fibre-optic cable system connecting Dublin, Ireland, and Southport, England. Tyco said it expects to complete the project in September. Tyco Submarine supplies undersea communications systems and services.