Italian cable manufacturer Prysmian has signed an agreement worth €5.5 billion ($6.29bn) with Koch-owned Molex to supply optical cables for deployment inside data centers.

The agreement, which includes a €550 million ($570m) upfront payment, will last for up to ten years.

With roots back to 1879, Milan-based Prysmian is an Italian company specializing in the production of electrical cable for use in the energy and telecom sectors. The company acquired cable manufacturer Channell Commercial Corporation for $950m last year and partnered with hollow-core optical fiber (HCF) company Relativity Networks.

Molex specializes in manufacturing electronic, electrical, and fiber optic connectivity products.

According to Prysmian, the deal with Molex is part of an overall set of new agreements and commercial initiatives with hyperscalers and data center infrastructure providers that are expected to bring in an additional cumulative value of more than €10bn ($11.41bn) on an incremental basis up to 2035, versus the 2025 baseline.

With this amount of growth forecast, Prysmian will implement a significant expansion in capacity for optical cables and fiber, that will see it more than double fiber capacity in the US versus the current baseline.

Prysmian's fiber and cables will go into these data centers to support the AI-driven architecture shifts and upgrades to fiber density.

In order to keep up with the demand for these cables, Prysmian will increase capacity to extend production of optical cables and fiber – including the glass preforming stage, for plants in the US and Europe.

Prysmian notes that it will more than double fiber capacity in the United States, as the company said it will allocate €1.25bn ($1.43bn) up to 2031 for this capacity increase. This will also create more than 1,000 new jobs globally, with around 600 in the US.

“This is a transformative moment for Prysmian’s Digital Solutions. Much like our agreements in the transmission business, we can now benefit in two ways: first, together with our customers, including the important partnership with Molex, we are investing to meet demand," said Massimo Battaini, CEO, Prysmian.

"And secondly, we share a clear vision to the market about the buoyancy of demand over the long-term, and Prysmian’s clear ambition to compete in the digital space to create value as a front-runner, in both technology and scale. The agreements and capacity investments strengthen our leadership in data centers, with every part of our business benefiting—from upgrading electricity grids and supplying electrical cable solutions to leveraging our expertise in long-haul digital connections and advancing our role in submarine telecom deployment."

Joe Nelligan, CEO, Molex, added: “For Molex, this represents a strategic expansion in the U.S., bringing increased capacity to support the growing demand for data center solutions with the quality and reliability our customers expect."