Japan-USA-Europe fibre link takes the Northwest Passage

Route planning has started on the pan-Arctic submarine cable that could link Europe, North America and Asia via the Northwest Passage – the latter opening as formerly permanent ice yields to climate change.

The idea of the project, dubbed Far North Fiber, is to terminate in Japan, Norway and Ireland, and have branches to Alaska, Canada and Greenland (see map). Estimated round-trip signal delay is 142ms.

“Significantly, the Far North Fiber system runs entirely through international waters and the maritime boundaries of Japan, the United States, Canada and EU nations” according to the Far North Fiber joint venture, which was established in 2022.

Venture members are: Cinia Oy (Finland), Far North Digital (USA) and Arteria Networks (Japan).

Alcatel Submarine Networks, which has expertise in the Arctic region, will be a significant contractor, and part funding is coming from CEF Digital, part of the EU’s Connecting Europe Facility.

Cable route study (CRS) results will be used to define the best route for the cable system in terms of safety, reliability, cultural, economic and environmental factors, said FNF.

Before the end of this year, the route study is expected to be complete and the associated marine survey should be under way. If the project goes ahead as foreseen, around 15,000km of the cable network will be operational by the end of 2026, with further branches added later.

“We are pleased to see the constantly growing interest in the project from our key stakeholders, such as customers and investors, as well as states and communities along the route,” said Cinia CEO Ari-Jussi Knaapila. “The cable route study is a concrete step forward, and it is delightful to see how these steps ahead in the project interest the market.”

Websites:
Far North Fiber
CEF Digital