Google’s Equiano undersea cable system landing in Cape Town marks a significant moment for the South African telecommunications industry, says network infrastructure provider Openserve CEO Althon Beukes.

Openserve facilitated the landing on August 8 at its cable station facility in Melkbosstrand, Cape Town, which will serve as the South African landing station and offer terrestrial services, connecting the cable landing to South African carrier- neutral data centres.

The Equiano cable, starting in Portugal, will run more than 12 000 km along the West Coast of Africa, landing in Lomé, Togo; Lagos, Nigeria; Swakopmund, Namibia; Rupert’s Bay, Saint Helena; and Melkbosstrand, South Africa, establishing a valuable new high-capacity connection between Africa and Europe.

In March, the Equiano subsea cable made its first landing in Africa in Lomé, marking the first in a series of landings on the continent for the subsea cable.

The cable, named after Nigerian-born writer and abolitionist Olaudah Equiano, landed in Swakopmund in July, and in Lagos in April.

The landing in South Africa is the final point before Equiano becomes operational later in 2022.

“The arrival of the cable will have a meaningful impact on the domestic economy through encouraging digital inclusion by making connectivity accessible to more South Africans,” says Beukes.

The cable is also the first submarine cable to incorporate optical switching at the fibre-pair level, instead of the traditional approach of wavelength-level switching.

In the initial design, Openserve will have 12 Tb/s of capacity with current technology, and 16 Tb/s will be possible with upgraded technology.

The design capacity of the Equiano subsea cable is about 20 times bigger than any other cable currently serving the region, which is expected to yield significant benefits for the relevant countries.

This includes increased broadband penetration and higher Internet use, subsequently creating economic benefits through the growth of the information and communication technology industry and the digital economy.

“We are committed to supporting Africa’s digital transformation and we are excited by the possibilities brought about by the arrival of the Equiano subsea cable to its final destination,” says Google sub-Saharan Africa MD Nitin Gajria.

“We have partnered with Telkom/Openserve on this initiative and hope it will be a great catalyst to help grow the economy.”