Wholesale infrastructure provider Openserve and Google have officially launched the Equiano undersea cable after it reached its final landing in South Africa.

Equiano, which is Africa’s highest capacity subsea Internet cable, landed at Openserve’s cable station facility in Melkbosstrand, in Cape Town, on August 8, in a partnership between Openserve and Google.

Openserve’s cable station facility serves as the South African landing station and will offer terrestrial services, connecting the cable landing to South African carrier-neutral data centres.

This followed the first landing of the cable in St Helena one year ago, before branching out to landings in Togo, Nigeria and Namibia in 2022. Equiano runs from Portugal along the west coast of Africa to South Africa.

The undersea cable, which has a capacity of 144 Tb/s, which is 20 times the capacity of the last cable built to serve the region, and the first to incorporate optical switching at the fibre-pair level as opposed to the traditional approach of wavelength-level switching, is expected to have a significant economic impact for the country and will help to drive digital transformation across the continent.

“The connectivity that will be unlocked through Equiano will have an immense impact on the information and communications technology sector and the domestic economy overall. The capacity that Equiano offers will make connectivity more accessible and affordable, helping to bridge the digital divide in South Africa. Making connectivity more attainable will also allow small businesses to embrace digital innovation and fully step into the digital economy,” said Telkom CEO Serame Taukobong at the official event in Melkbosstrand on Thursday.

“Google is committed to helping drive digital transformation in Africa and the Equiano Cable is a major part of that commitment. The cable will not only improve Internet speeds and affordability, but will help to support the growth of the digital economy in Africa,” Google South Africa country director Dr Alistair Mokoena added.

“In South Africa, we anticipate that it will indirectly contribute to the creation of 180 000 jobs and increase gross domestic product by up to $7-billion by 2025.”

Google is investing in the Equiano undersea cable alongside a variety of partners and carriers and has partnered with Openserve, which will also be able to use and benefit from the cable’s additional capacity.

“The Equiano undersea cable will ultimately transform the connectivity experience in South Africa from Internet service providers to the end-user,” concluded Openserve CEO Althon Beukes, who added that the Internet service providers will be able to provide lower retail prices and the end-user will enjoy seamless connectivity, lower latency and faster Internet speeds.