Telecom Italia’s Sparkle has joined Liberty Networks and Gold Data to build the Manta subsea cable system, connecting the US, Mexico, Panama and Colombia.
Plans to combine Gold Data’s GD-1 subsea system and Liberty Networks' LN-1 subsea system were first announced in December 2023.
The cables are being designed as a single system but will be operated as separate segments, with Liberty fully owning the LN-1 leg and both companies investing in the GD-1 branch.
The new plan will see the cable renamed Manta, and Sparkle will collaborate on both portions of the system.
The 5,600km Manta cable has been designed with a capacity of 20 Tbps per fiber pair and will land in six points across the four countries.
The cable is also set to feature two terrestrial components - one in Mexico running from Veracruz to Mexico City and Queretaro, and the other running between Cartagena and Bogota in Colombia.
Manta is set to be operational by 2027.
“Manta represents our ongoing commitment to facilitating seamless connectivity across the Caribbean and Latin America region with a reliable and resilient solution focused on the future of data traffic,” said Ray Collins, Liberty Latin America’s SVP of infrastructure and corporate strategy.
Enrico Bagnasco, CEO of Sparkle, described the project as "groundbreaking." He said: "Manta will establish the foundation for future innovations that drive digital acceleration throughout the region.
“Together we are committed to building a new pan-regional subsea cable system that meets the growing demands of businesses and customers across the region.”
The manufacturer of the cable is yet to be announced.
Sparkle operates data centers in Greece, Sicily, and Turkey. Sparkle announced plans for a new GreenMed cable in the Adriatic Sea earlier this year and will also land the Unitirenno cable in Genoa in Q2 next year.
The company is also an investor in the Italy-Monaco, Italy-Albania, Italy-Croatia, Italy-Malta, Trapani-Kelibia, MedNautilus, IMEWE, SeaMeWe-3, and SeaMeWe-5 cables.
Investment firm KKR is looking to acquire Sparkle as TI looks to dispose of some of its assets.
Gold Data provides telecommunications infrastructure throughout the Americas and the Caribbean, interconnecting 156 PoPs and 76 data centers.
Liberty Networks is an infrastructure and enterprise connectivity provider in Latin America and the Caribbean, connecting around 40 countries with 50,000km of subsea fiber optic cables.
