Data from Angola can reach the United States in 130 milliseconds. Now the cables that carry it are getting a big boost for AI and cloud traffic.
Angola Cables is upgrading two undersea cables with gear from Ciena. They are MONET and the South Atlantic Cable System (SACS). The aim is more room for cloud and AI traffic across the Atlantic. The upgrade includes 800G links on MONET.
The two cables work as one route. MONET runs 10,556 km from the United States to Brazil. SACS runs 6,165 km from Brazil to Angola. It was the first cable to cross the South Atlantic. Together, they link Angola and the United States. A round trip takes 130 milliseconds.
Angola Cables will use three Ciena products. They are Waveserver with WaveLogic 6 Extreme, the 6500 Packet-Optical platform and Navigator, a control tool. They add room to the cables already in use. The software makes the network easier to run. Customers can buy one 100 Gbps link or a full fibre pair.
“Our submarine cable systems are a critical digital bridge connecting Africa with the Americas,” said Adriano Caldevilla, CTO of Angola Cables. He said demand from cloud firms keeps rising. The upgrade will help customers build AI-ready networks. Fernando Capella of Ciena said AI and cloud services need faster, smarter networks. Angola Cables has used Ciena gear before.
Why it matters: AI and cloud services need fast, steady links between continents. A direct route from Angola to the Americas gives African firms another path for data. Adding room to cables already in the sea is quicker than laying new ones. Startups and cloud users may reach servers in the Americas more easily.
What to watch next: when the extra capacity goes live, which cloud and media firms sign up, and whether other African cable owners announce similar upgrades.
Sources: African Wireless Comms on Angola Cables and Ciena; Connecting Africa on the MONET and SACS upgrade; Ocean News on the upgrade.
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