Telecom Egypt, the total telecom operator in Egypt and one of the largest subsea cable operators in the region, has announced the signing of an agreement to construct the Sharm El Sheikh–Taba subsea cable in accordance with the company’s new strategy. The new cable will extend Telecom Egypt’s Red Sea Subsea Festoon Cable System to Taba, creating a continuous subsea connectivity path linking Suez, Zafarana, Ras Ghareb, Sharm El Sheikh, and Taba. The project marks a key milestone in expanding the Company’s subsea infrastructure across the Red Sea and Sinai, further strengthening Egypt’s position as a strategic global connectivity hub.

The Sharm El Sheikh–Taba subsea link is a vital step forward toward completing connectivity between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, by connecting onward through the Internet Corridor of Egypt (ICE). The approximately 200-kilometer, repeaterless, high-fiber-count submarine cable is designed to provide one of the shortest, fastest, and most secure connectivity routes between Sharm El Sheikh and Taba, with a design capacity of approximately five petabits per second. Using the latest fiber-optic technology, the link will deliver lower signal losses, enhanced network performance, and greater capacity, while providing international carriers and network operators with increased route diversity and connectivity options. The system is expected to be ready for service in the fourth quarter of 2027.

The extended Red Sea Subsea Festoon Cable System will further strengthen Telecom Egypt’s Red Sea infrastructure by adding new landing-point options and an additional subsea path along the coastline. This will enhance network resilience and redundancy, and provide greater routing flexibility for international traffic transiting Egypt between Asia, Africa, and Europe.

The agreement was signed in Cairo by Tamer El Mahdi, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt, and Byron Skaftouros, Managing Director of Power Sub Link (PSL), in the presence of H.E. Raafat Hendy, Minister of Communications and Information Technology.

Under the agreement, PSL, a global leader in advanced subsea installation and marine engineering technologies, will implement the Sharm El Sheikh–Taba subsea cable.

H.E Raafat Hendy, Minister of communications and Information Technology, commented:

“This agreement reflects Egypt’s continued efforts to strengthen its digital infrastructure and enhance the diversity and resilience of its international connectivity routes and reinforce Egypt's pivotal role in global digital connectivity. The development of the new subsea cable further reinforces the role of Sinai as an important component of Egypt’s digital infrastructure by expanding its subsea and terrestrial infrastructure. The Ministry is committed to strengthening Egypt’s position as a global connectivity hub between East and West, and to continuing the development of its international digital infrastructure to support global data traffic and meet the growing demand for secure, efficient, and diverse international data transmission.”  

Tamer El Mahdi, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt, commented:

“This project aligns with our new strategy, which aims to maximize the Company's role in digital infrastructure and strengthen its position regionally and internationally. The Sharm-Taba cable is another significant milestone in the development of Telecom Egypt’s international infrastructure, particularly its subsea infrastructure in Sinai, strengthening route diversity, resilience, and capacity.  It advances a new eastern digital corridor connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean through the Sinai Peninsula, reinforcing our strategy of leveraging Egypt’s unique geographic position at the crossroads of three continents. These investments demonstrate Telecom Egypt’s continued commitment to supporting our international partners with secure, resilient, and high-capacity connectivity routes to meet the region’s growing data demand.”

Byron Skaftouros, Managing Director of Power Sub Link, commented: