Tentatively called IRIS, the new route will connect Iceland, Ireland the UK with potential branches and onwards connections to existing infrastructure such as AquaComms’ AEC-1 and AEC-2 and FARICE-1 and DANICE.
Under the terms of the agreement, Farice will carry out the desktop study and research necessary to the construction of the new system. The DTS will include aspects such as mapping landing sites and project managing the seabed survey.
At present Farice operates two other cable systems, the FARICE-1 cable that links the east coast Iceland to the Faroe Islands and Scotland, and DANICE, which connects the south coast of Iceland to Denmark.
Iceland’s 4,800km Greenland-Connect is the country’s third cable system linking Iceland to Canada and the US. This newest Iceland to Europe system will be the country’s fourth and is set to further improve the country’s security and resiliency.
The research vessel is expected to complete the survey by summer this year with the research finalised shortly afterwards. No further details of the cable build has been given.
Regionally Iceland aren’t the only Nordic country developing subsea cable projects. Last year Cinia confirmed plans to develop Arctic Connect, an 18,000km system still in development stages that will connect the west coast of the US to China, Japan, Bering Strait, Norway, Germany and Finland.
On the other side of the world, Anchorage-based private cable operator Quintillion is working on phase two and three of its Quintillion Fiber System, a 15,000km cable linking Europe and Asia to the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic.
To read the full feature on what plans Cinia and Quintillion have for their artic cables, please click here.