Facebook and Google to lay submarine cables between US and Southeast Asia

Facebook and Google are planning to lay two massive submarine cables that will connect the west coast of the United States to Singapore and Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy and home to a growing number of users of smartphones.

The Echo and Bifrost transpacific cables will increase data capacity between regions by 70% and improve internet reliability, Facebook said on Monday.

While Facebook is investing in both cables, Google is only investing in Echo. The cost of the projects, which are still subject to regulatory approvals, was not disclosed.

“We are committed to bringing more people online to a faster Internet,” wrote Facebook vice president of network investments Kevin Salvadori and chief network investment officer Nico Roehrich in a joint blog post. “As part of this effort, we are proud to announce that we have partnered with leading regional and global partners to build two new submarine cables – Echo and Bifrost – which will provide vital new connections between the region. Asia-Pacific and North America. “

Partners include Indonesian companies Telin and XL Axiata, and Singapore-based Keppel.

The goal is for Echo to be completed by the end of 2023, while Bifrost is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.

Last May, Facebook announced plans to build a 37,000 kilometer (22,991 mile) submarine cable around Africa to provide it with better Internet access.

Google is also working on an undersea cable called Equiano, which aims to link Africa to Europe. The titan of web research has another unit, Loon, which manufactures high altitude balloons that provide 4G internet to rural communities. He recently announced an extension of this plan to Mozambique.

Facebook previously planned to broadcast the internet to remote areas using solar-powered drones. Called Aquila, the company closed the project in 2018 but reportedly worked with Airbus to test similar drones again in Australia.