Data Center Dynamics | February 17, 2025

• The Arctic Way subsea cable system which includes 2,350km cable will be located within the Arctic Circle and is expected to commence service in 2028.

• There are currently two existing subsea cables to Svalbard which will not yet be retired and will serve as a backup for the incoming cable.

• This comes shortly after GlobalConnect joined the Polar Connect consortium earlier this year to build a subsea Internet cable connecting the North Pole to Europe and Asia.

• In the Southern Hemisphere, Chile’s Undersecretariat of Telecommunications is planning to build a subsea cable between Antarctica and Chile.

Power Technology | February 14, 2025

• Iberdrola has announced the start of construction on the Eastern Green Link 1 subsea electricity superhighway project between Scotland and England.

• Onshore construction has just begun on the 190km subsea cable, with offshore construction expected to begin in the summer of 2025.

• The cable connects the southeast of Scotland with the northeast of England and will transport green electricity sufficient for two million homes.

• Specialist vessels will lay the cable across the seabed and bury it along the route before integrating it into the grid.

• Ofgem has approved an £8m fund to support the communities where the infrastructure meets land, delivering social, environmental and economic benefits.

MI News Network | February 4, 2025

• Swedish prosecutors confirmed on Monday that the cargo ship Vezhen accidentally damaged a subsea cable connecting Sweden and Latvia on January 26.

• The Maltese-flagged vessel was released after the investigation concluded that the damage was not intentional.

• In the wake of many suspected sabotage events involving subsea cables, it was determined that this damage was a result of a series of unfortunate factors, not deliberate action.

• The company explained that the ship was sailing in extremely bad weather, and the left anchor had dragged along the seabed without the crew noticing. 

• “An investigation is continuing to find out whether other crimes may have been responsible for the cable break,” the prosecutor’s statement said.

MI News Network | February 3, 2025

• Norwegian authorities have released the Silver Dania, a Norwegian-owned, Russian crewed ship initially suspected of damaging an underwater fibre optic cable connecting Latvia and Sweden’s Gotland island.

• The Silver Dania was detained on January 31, 2025, at the request of Latvian authorities. After a thorough investigation, no evidence was found linking the vessel to the incident.

• Following a series of incidents involving the damage of subsea cables and natural gas pipelines, NATO has launched a mission named “Baltic Sentry,” to safeguard critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea.

• The LVRTC stated that while gas pipelines and power cables can take months to repair, damaged fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea are typically restored within weeks.

The Guardian | February 18, 2025

• Project Waterworth involves a 50,000km (31,000-mile) subsea cable, and aims to connect the US, India, South Africa, Brazil and other regions.

• More than 95% of the world’s internet traffic is transferred through undersea cables, so this project will enable greater economic cooperation, facilitate digital inclusion, and open opportunities for technological development in these regions.

• In July, large parts of Tonga were left in darkness after the undersea internet cable connecting the island network was damaged, causing chaos for local businesses.

• The project includes plans to lay its cable system up to 7,000 metres deep and “use enhanced burial techniques in high-risk fault areas, such as shallow waters near the coast, to avoid damage from ship anchors and other hazards”.

Capacity Media | February 4, 2025

• The UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has urged European leaders to enhance cooperation on subsea cable security following multiple incidents of cable damage.

• The call for collaboration comes after a Russian spy ship was spotted near UK waters, with the Defence Secretary telling Parliament it was mapping critical underwater infrastructure.

• Despite the latest incident found to have been an accident, European nations continue looking into ways to improve subsea resilience and deterrence.

• Starmer’s call to action comes as he pushes for a “reset” in relations with the EU, some five years after the UK left the single market.

Data Center Dynamics | February 3, 2025

• The 12,000km cable is expected to be ready for service in Q1 2027.

• It will have a relatively low capacity of around 12.8Tbps per fiber pair.

• Meta will likely sell capacity on the system to third parties, allowing each fiber pair owner to operate and control its own fronthaul system.

• ORCA - will have three landing points in Toucheng, Taiwan; and Hermosa Beach and Manchester in California, US.

Data Center Dynamics | January 20, 2025

• Digital infrastructure investment firm D9 has sold its interest in a fiber pair of the upcoming 2Africa Pearls subsea cable.

• The project continues to be impacted by ongoing conflicts in the Red Sea area, which have led to an indefinite delay to its final construction completion

• However, D9 announced in February of last year that it had decided to wind down its operations and sell off its assets following a strategic review.

Ocean News | January 20, 2025

• OEC is Europe’s first and only cable recovery and recycling company.

• Under the agreement, OEC will acquire from Sparkle over 22,000 km of telegraph, coaxial, and fiber optic subsea cables laid in the Mediterranean.

• This has the potential to save more than 35,000 tons of CO2e through secondary material manufacturing reuse.

• OEC will then return the materials with renewed value to industrial use as secondary raw materials.

Data Center Dynamics | January 20, 2025

• Subsea cable damage in the Baltic Sea in recent months was likely the result of maritime accidents, not Russian sabotage.

• Officials report that anchors were dragged across the seabed accidentally because of inexperienced crews aboard poorly maintained vessels.

• Officials spoke on a condition of anonymity, making it unclear which officials participated in the investigations.

• Various cuts to cables out of Finland in recent months prompted a response from NATO, which launched a new military program to strengthen subsea infrastructure in the region earlier this month.

Submarine Telecom Forums | January 16, 2025

• MOX Networks, LLC (“MOX”) is a leading fiber-optic network specialist. It builds the capacity to deliver on the infinite possibilities for new paths, connections, and performance.

• The MOX network spans over 16,000km with submarine and terrestrial fiber, including access to the latest next-generation subsea system, Topaz.

• The network has since expanded through organic buildouts, acquisitions, and partnerships, creating a vast fiber-optic network portfolio spanning North America and connecting to Japan.

Data Center Dynamics | January 22, 2025

• The government said that subsea cables to the Matsu Islands, which lie close to the coast of China, were disconnected due to "natural deterioration."

• According to Deputy Digital Minister Chiueh no "suspicious" ships were detected when the cables went offline.

• Earlier this month, four fibers of a Chunghwa Telecom-operated subsea cable were damaged off the coast at Yehliu, New Taipei City, on January 3, 2025.

Profit | January 16th, 2025

The arrival of the world’s largest submarine cable in Pakistan is expected to alleviate persistent internet connectivity issues

Sunday Observer | January 12th, 2025

The Matara landing was completed in collaboration with Subcom LLC, USA, and under an agreement with SEA-ME-WE 6 Consortium including Sri Lanka Telecom PLC, as the legal signatory to the consortium.

Data Center Dynamics | January 15th, 2025

Amazon is planning to deploy a subsea cable linking Ireland to the US, with a landing site in County Cork.

France24 | December 27th, 2024

NATO will bolster its military presence in the Baltic Sea after the suspected sabotage of an undersea power cable linking Finland and Estonia this week.

The Record | December 30th, 2024

Eagle S, which had departed from the Russian port of Ust-Luga on Christmas Day is suspected of dragging its anchor for several miles.

The Express Tribune | January 2nd, 2025

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has issued a warning to the public regarding disruptions in internet services across the country, Express News reported.

The Guardian | January 7th, 2025

Cameroon-registered vessel Shunxing 39 was detained Friday, January 3rd by Taiwan’s coastguard on suspicion of dragging its anchor over a subsea cable which runs to the US and is co-owned by several international companies.