SINGTEL : Z74 0% has signed a memorandum of understanding with Indonesian carrier services provider Telekomunikasi Indonesia International – or Telin – to develop a new submarine cable system connecting Singapore and Batam under a consortium called Indonesia Singapore Cable System (Insica).
The cable system will span 100 kilometres and is expected to be operational in Q4 2026.
It will feature a 24-fibre pair subsea cable along with two diverse terrestrial cable paths, with each fibre pair offering a maximum capacity of up to 20 terabits per second.
On Friday (May 31), Singtel and Telin said this is expected to deliver “exceptional bandwidth, seamless connectivity and robust network security” while enabling efficient resource-sharing and scalability.
Both parties added that Insica’s new diverse link will enhance network protection and reliability such that 24/7 operations for data centres will be ensured.
Direct connectivity between data centres is further expected to support the deployment of emerging technologies that require high bandwidth and low latency for commercial-scale and real-time applications.
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Examples of such emerging technologies include the Internet of Things, robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics.
“With this cable system, we’ll be able to enhance the connectivity between the countries to support the intensive, higher-power density AI workloads of enterprises and cloud companies,” said Ooi Seng Keat, vice president of digital infrastructure and services at Singtel.
While Telin chief Budi Satria Dharma Purba said both Batam and Singapore are “prime locations” for data centre investments, Ooi noted that Batam was “emerging as a prime location” for data centres due to its close proximity to Singapore.
Ooi said: “The development of the Insica cable system is yet another step that we’re taking in architecting a hyper-connected, digital ecosystem to serve the long-term demands of the region’s digital future and boost the regional economy.”
