The project marks a major development in strengthening Europe’s digital backbone, particularly along the critical North Sea corridor.
At the heart of the initiative is a new consortium submarine cable, with Exa Infrastructure serving as the sole telecom consortium member.
The company is providing both Landing Party and backhaul services, introducing two scalable cable landing stations and upgrading In Line Amplifier (ILA) facilities across the UK, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
The new route comprises 1,085 km of low-loss G.652D terrestrial fibre and a 115 km subsea segment from Margate, UK, to Ostend, Belgium, using ultra-low-loss G.654C cable.
The new landing stations are Exa’s 21st and 22nd globally, expanding its already extensive network that spans the U.S. East Coast, Western Europe, and the Mediterranean.
Steve Roberts, SVP strategic network investments and product management at Exa described the development as a significant step forward: “This is a real milestone for robust connectivity options in Europe, and includes the first new subsea cable on this complex corridor, the North Sea, in 25 years.
“This new route complements our investment in the Channel Tunnel delivering scalable, modern and optimised fibre paths between key FLAP hubs.”
Ciaran Delaney, COO at Exa Infrastructure added: “This has been a complex and challenging build. The regulatory landscape in Europe plus the North Sea’s challenging seabed conditions demanded ‘in region’ expertise in the various jurisdictions plus sophisticated installation techniques particularly on the wet segments to install and protect the system from future interruption to service.
“At Exa Infrastructure, we have the right expertise and experience to overcome the most complex and challenging situations to in this case, deliver the next-generation connectivity across Europe.”
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