The companies behind the planned Hawaiki transpacific cable connecting Australia and New Zealand with the US have revealed that installation of the cable is due to commence next month.
Hawaiki Submarine Cable and cable supplier TE Connectivity said the 14,000km of subsea cable are in the final stages of being loaded onto two cable laying vessels.
All installation permits for the planned landings in Australia, New Zealand and the US have meanwhile been secured, and the system remains on track for completion in mid-2018.
Once complete, the Hawaiki Cable will link the three nations via Hawaii and American Samoa, with options to expand to multiple south Pacific islands such as Fiji and Tonga. It will be the highest cross-sectional capacity link between the US and Australia and New Zealand.
“The coming months will see the realization of our vision for Hawaiki, a system that will impact the capabilities and economies of hundreds of Pacific communities,” Hawaiki Submarine Cable CEO Remi Galasso said.