Google unveils plans for two new Indo-Pacific subsea cables

Google unveils plans for two new Indo-Pacific subsea cables

Google Bosun subsea cable plan

Google is expanding its Australia Connect initiative with two new subsea cables connecting Australia with Christmas Island.

The Bosun subsea cable, named after Christmas Island’s White-tailed “Bosun” tropicbird, will connect Darwin, Australia to the island which has onward connectivity to Singapore.

A second interlink cable will then connect Melbourne, Perth, and Christmas Island, with the Melbourne section connecting to the Honomoana cable system, part of the Pacific Connect initiative, creating a new interconnection point for services from the US to Asia.

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“Once operational, Bosun and the interlink cable will deliver new digital pathways for Australia, enhancing the reliability and resilience of the Internet within the country and throughout the Indo-Pacific region,” Brian Quigley, VP for global network infrastructure at Google Cloud wrote in a blog post.

Alongside Google, the Australia Connect initiative involves the likes of NEXTDC and SUBCO, with Vocus delivering the terrestrial fibre pairs for Bosun,

No capacities or timelines for completion were disclosed for either Bosun or the new interconnect, however.

Michelle Rowland, the Australian Minister for Communications said: “These new cable systems will not only expand and strengthen the resilience of Australia’s own digital connectivity through new and diversified routes, but will also complement the Government’s active work with industry and government partners to support secure, resilient and reliable connectivity across the Pacific.”

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