INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Cabling
Southern Cross, ASN and OMS Group sign SX Tasman Express( SX-TX) subsea cable supply contract
The subsea cable system will showcase the latest in subsea technology including Open Cable System architecture.
Southern Cross, Alcatel Submarine Networks and OMS Group have signed the SX Tasman Express( SX-TX) subsea supply contract, connecting Sydney and Auckland.
Leveraging ASN’ s state-of-the-art subsea technology, the Tasman Express subsea cable system will deliver 400 terabits of additional capacity across 16 fibre pairs( FPs) for Southern Cross customers.
The subsea cable system will showcase the latest in subsea technology including Open Cable System architecture that will be compatible with future generations of submarine line terminals and optimised latency to support next generation digital applications. The system design includes ASN branching unit technology to facilitate an alternate Australian landing, subject to demand and final design confirmation.
In partnership with ASN, OMS Group will lead the marine installation using its latest fleet of vessels – the project is scheduled for completion in 2028.
Laurie Miller, President and CEO, Southern Cross Cables Limited, said:“ Tasman Express marks a significant step in enhancing digital infrastructure between Australia and New Zealand. With ASN and OMS ' s support, this system delivers ultra-high capacity, low-latency fibre connectivity, meeting the evolving demands of AI-driven cloud regions in Sydney and Auckland."
Ronnie Lim, Group CEO of OMS Group, said: " This partnership underscores our commitment to shaping the future of digital infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific. By deploying the SX-TX system, we are not only reinforcing vital links between Australia and New Zealand but also strengthening the backbone of regional connectivity.”
Projesh Banerjea, Managing Director, Infrastructure, KKR, said:“ The SX-TX project brings to bear OMS Group’ s ability to deliver resilient, high-capacity subsea solutions and ASN’ s advanced technology to benefit Southern Cross’ customers and underscores OMS Group’ s commitment to enabling next-generation connectivity across the Asia-Pacific.”
Paul Gabla, VP Sales & Marketing, ASN said:“ This project will be a transformational infrastructure asset significantly enhancing capacity and resilience across the Tasman Sea for Australia and New Zealand.”
Alcatel Submarine Networks( ASN) is a major player in the submarine cable industry, with more than 850,000km of submerged optical systems deployed worldwide.
The Southern Cross cable network comprises three diverse submarine communications cables from Oceania to the US West coast with a current potential capacity of over 100Tbs. The Southern Cross NEXT cable is the latest high performance express route in the Southern Cross eco-system, providing data centre connectivity between Sydney, Auckland and Los Angeles.
Southern Cross is currently undertaking the Southern Cross Tasman Express project – a high-capacity SDM express route, providing 400Tbs + of data-centre connectivity between Sydney and Auckland.
OMS Group is a global, neutral and integrated telecommunications infrastructure service provider with end-to-end solution across the digital value chain covering Submarine Cable Installation, Installation Support and Marine Maintenance under Telecommunications services An Interconnect Managed Services division offers Cable Landing Stations and Network Backhaul related services, and Data Centre Connectivity. p
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