NEW DELHI — A new subsea fiber‑optic system, dubbed I‑2SEA, is slated to increase data‑transport capacity between India and Singapore, industry sources said. The cable, which will land in Mumbai and Chennai on the Indian side and in Singapore’s Changi on the other, is expected to augment the region’s international bandwidth and provide redundancy for existing routes.
The I‑2SEA project is being developed by a consortium that includes Indian telecom operators and Singapore‑based partners. According to the announcement, the system will add several terabits per second of capacity, though exact figures were not disclosed. The cable’s design incorporates the latest wavelength‑division multiplexing (WDM) technology, which allows multiple data streams to travel simultaneously over a single fiber pair.
Stakeholders say the additional capacity will support growing demand for cloud services, video streaming, and enterprise connectivity in both countries. “The I‑2SEA link will help meet the surge in data traffic generated by digital transformation initiatives across India and Southeast Asia,” a spokesperson for the consortium told Light Reading.
Analysts note that the new route could also improve latency for traffic between the two markets, a factor increasingly important for financial services and real‑time applications. By providing an alternative path to existing cables that traverse the Indian Ocean, I‑2SEA may enhance network resilience in the event of a fiber cut or other disruption.
The project aligns with broader regional efforts to expand submarine cable infrastructure, a trend driven by the rapid growth of internet users and the rollout of 5G services. While the cable is expected to be operational later this year, the exact commissioning date has not been confirmed.
Analysis:
The I‑2SEA cable reflects a strategic push by Indian and Singaporean telecom firms to capture a larger share of the Asia‑Pacific data market, which is projected to grow at double‑digit rates through 2030. By increasing capacity and providing a more direct path, the system could reduce reliance on existing routes that pass through the Middle East, potentially lowering transit costs and mitigating geopolitical risks associated with those corridors. However, the competitive advantage will depend on how quickly service providers can integrate the new capacity into their offerings and whether pricing remains attractive to enterprises seeking high‑speed connectivity.
Sources
– Light Reading, “I‑2SEA cable to boost capacity on key India‑Singapore route,” Google News India Technology, https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiqAFBVV95cUxQVGdXWnByRTU3VVFVR0xFd29ZYUdmRlc5NjNTYkY1c1ItdWpXc3ZZRk5seVdlUzdTRVFuMXVXWksyR0ExeVZmUU8wS3VKODNIU2JlOTdfNVlIYS1qd1VaZno0TXZHWmYzbzFnOHRkVVJxeldVbTU4QmFkb2YzOEw2Z1NfQ0s5RWlXQ3hzb1lJVXF6akZsTTN6RDVVX19EUGsyNjA4alJrV0s?oc=5
Story synopsis gathered from: Google News India Technology — source
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