FLAG, one of the world’s leading privately owned subsea cable operators, has unveiled a significant expansion of its international network through the acquisition of a dedicated fibre pair on Google’s ECHO subsea cable. The investment establishes a direct, high-capacity route between South Asia and the United States.
The newly acquired fibre pair, scheduled to be operational by mid-2026, will connect key landing stations in Singapore, Piti (Guam), and Eureka (California). With the ECHO cable system engineered for ultra-low latency, the route will deliver an estimated round-trip delay of just 165 milliseconds between Singapore and the US.
According to FLAG, the acquisition enhances the company’s ability to provide high-speed, resilient infrastructure on one of the world’s most critical digital corridors. Paul Abfalter, chief strategy & revenue officer of FLAG, commented on the investment, stating, “We’re accelerating growth in our digital infrastructure with investments in subsea and terrestrial fibre capacity on unique, diverse routes. This investment expands our global network, creating a fully owned fibre ring around the globe connecting major economies.”
FLAG’s CEO, Carl Grivner, commented that the acquisition aligns with the company’s long-term goal of delivering robust and dependable connectivity solutions worldwide.
“At FLAG, our vision has always been to deliver resilient, global connectivity solutions that empower customers. Our continued investment in new FibreLinks around the globe reflects this commitment. Once in service, ECHO will be one of only two cables directly connecting Singapore to the US. By interconnecting it with our India Asia Express investment, which links India to Singapore, we are set to become the leading provider of India-to-US connectivity.”
Earlier this year, FLAG secured a $340 million refinancing package to support its expansion initiatives and long-term growth strategy.
The Asia-US corridor is one of the busiest and most data-intensive in the world, with demand driven by sectors such as financial trading, media streaming, cloud services, and enterprise communications.
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