Airtel Lands 2Africa Pearls Cable in India, Strengthening Global Digital Connectivity
In a significant boost to India’s digital growth ambitions, Bharti Airtel announced on Thursday that it has successfully landed the 2Africa Pearls subsea cable in India.
New Delhi: In a significant boost to India’s digital growth ambitions, Bharti Airtel announced on Thursday that it has successfully landed the 2Africa Pearls subsea cable in India. This development connects India to Africa and Europe via the Middle East, further enhancing the country’s global digital connectivity.
2Africa Pearls Cable Brings Over 100 Tbps International Capacity to India
The 2Africa Pearls cable offers an impressive capacity of over 100 terabits per second (tbps), contributing significantly to India’s international data transmission capabilities. This investment strengthens Airtel’s global network, supporting the country’s growing digital economy.
Sharat Sinha, Director and CEO of Airtel Business, stated, “We are thrilled to bring the 2Africa Pearls cable to India, adding to our network resilience. We are aggressively diversifying our global network and recently landed the SEA-WE-ME-6 cable in Chennai and Mumbai. We will continue investing in global cable systems and future-proof our network to deliver high uptime, reliability, and superior quality network to our customers.”
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Airtel’s Global Network Expands with 2Africa Pearls Partnership
Airtel has partnered with 2Africa Pearls investors – center3 and Meta – to land the subsea cable in India. The 2Africa Pearls cable is part of the larger 2Africa cable system, which, once completed, will become the world’s longest subsea cable system. Spanning over 45,000 kilometers, the 2Africa cable system will connect Asia, Africa, and Europe through the Middle East, offering unparalleled global connectivity.
Airtel’s global network now spans over 400,000 route kilometers (Rkms) across 50 countries and five continents. The company has invested in 34 global cables, including recent ones like 2Africa, Southeast Asia-Japan Cable 2 (SJC2), and Equiano.
India’s Role in the Global Subsea Cable Network
India plays a critical role in the global subsea cable network, with around 17 international subsea cables connected to 14 landing stations across cities like Mumbai, Chennai, Cochin, Tuticorin, and Trivandrum. Indian telecom giants such as Tata Communications, Bharti Airtel, Global Cloud eXchange, and BSNL operate these vital infrastructures.
Airtel’s recent investments in global cable systems, including the SEA-ME-WE-6 submarine cable, further solidify the country’s position as a key player in international digital connectivity.
Future Prospects for India’s Digital Growth
In addition to Airtel’s investments, global tech giant Meta recently announced ‘Project Waterworth,’ a 50,000-kilometer undersea cable initiative connecting India with the US, Brazil, and South Africa. This initiative will further enhance India’s growing importance in global digital networks and solidify its role as a hub for international data traffic.
