What Is the New South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor?
DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom have agreed to explore a new interconnection corridor between Lisbon and São Paulo. The proposal is designed to give networks in Southern Europe, West Africa and Latin America more direct and diverse ways to exchange traffic.
European interconnection and onward access into DE-CIX ecosystems.
Existing international fibre landings and a growing carrier-neutral hub role.
One of the region’s largest digital markets and a major DE-CIX location.
The South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor is a proposed digital transport and internet-exchange arrangement between DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom. Cabo Verde Telecom would provide dedicated transport capacity between Lisbon and São Paulo, while DE-CIX would provide access into its wider interconnection ecosystem. The goal is to create more direct and resilient routes between Southern Europe, West Africa and Latin America.
The corridor in plain English
The corridor is not best understood as one piece of infrastructure. It is a commercial and technical framework that combines long-distance network transport with access to major internet exchanges.
- Partners
- DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom.
- Core route
- Lisbon to São Paulo, with Cabo Verde acting as an Atlantic gateway.
- DE-CIX role
- Access to interconnection ecosystems including Frankfurt, Madrid, Marseille, New York and São Paulo.
- CVTelecom role
- Dedicated international transport capacity across its Atlantic network footprint.
- Current status
- Non-binding letter of intent signed on 29 September 2026.
That distinction matters because calling it a single new submarine cable would be misleading. If you want the physical layer explained separately, our guide to why subsea fibre cables matter to the internet explains how ocean traffic is carried.
Three layers make the idea work
The geography is the whole point
Cabo Verde sits in a useful position between three digital regions. The islands are close enough to West Africa to serve regional traffic, linked north toward Europe, and already connected westward toward Brazil.
Lisbon gives the corridor access to a major Southern European interconnection market and routes onward into the rest of Europe.
The project strengthens Cabo Verde’s role as a place where regional and international networks can meet rather than simply pass by.
São Paulo is one of Latin America’s biggest network markets and already hosts a DE-CIX Internet and Cloud Exchange.
Why does another Atlantic route matter?
Alternative paths help operators avoid relying on the same small number of northern landing points and transit hubs.
When traffic can take a shorter route, response times can improve. Our guide to what latency means explains why this matters even when headline broadband speed is unchanged.
Extra route choices are valuable when a subsea cable is damaged, a landing point is disrupted or one path becomes congested.
Cloud, data-centre and AI workloads need enormous amounts of fibre. Our report on Verizon’s $1bn Google fibre deal shows the same demand pattern elsewhere.
How far along is the corridor?
Signed on 29 September 2026.
Not yet. The letter of intent is non-binding.
Still to be agreed as part of a definitive arrangement.
Not publicly finalised.
No confirmed service-launch date has been announced.
The corridor should not be described as fully operational yet, and it should not be presented as a single newly built submarine cable. The announcement is a partnership framework that still needs definitive technical and commercial agreements.
Will home broadband customers notice it directly?
Probably not in an obvious way. There is unlikely to be a retail broadband package called the South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor. The benefits would sit behind the scenes inside the international networks used by ISPs, cloud providers and content platforms.
If the corridor succeeds, the practical upside is more choice over how traffic moves between Europe, Africa and Latin America. That can mean better resilience, less dependence on a small number of established routes and more capacity for cloud, content and AI traffic.
The project fits into the broader shift toward denser fibre and smarter international network design covered in our guide to the future of broadband and connectivity.
The corridor is about giving Atlantic internet traffic more choice
DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom want to combine Atlantic transport capacity with access to major internet exchanges so networks can move data more directly between Southern Europe, West Africa and Latin America. The concept could improve route diversity, resilience and latency, but it is still an early-stage proposal under a non-binding letter of intent rather than a finished commercial service.
South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor FAQs
What is the South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor?
It is a proposed digital interconnection corridor being explored by DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom to create more direct connectivity between Lisbon and São Paulo while linking digital ecosystems in Southern Europe, West Africa and Latin America.
Is the South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor a new submarine cable?
Not as currently announced. The proposal is an interconnection and transport arrangement, not a confirmed new single submarine cable. Cabo Verde Telecom already uses systems including EllaLink, WACS and SHARE for international connectivity.
Why is Cabo Verde important to the corridor?
Cabo Verde sits between Europe, West Africa and the Americas and has multiple international subsea cable connections. The corridor is intended to strengthen its role as a digital gateway and interconnection hub in the Atlantic.
When will the South Atlantic Interconnection Corridor launch?
No launch date has been announced. DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom signed a non-binding letter of intent on 29 September 2026, and the final technical and commercial terms still require a definitive agreement.
Sources checked
The corridor was announced on 29 September 2026 through a non-binding letter of intent. Reporting from multiple telecom and infrastructure outlets is supported by DE-CIX material on its Brazilian exchanges and Cabo Verde Telecom’s existing Atlantic connectivity strategy.
- TechAfrica, 29 September 2026 — Lisbon–São Paulo corridor structure, non-binding status, CVTelecom transport capacity and DE-CIX exchange access.
- Compare the Cloud, 29 September 2026 — partnership framework, regional objectives and comments from DE-CIX and Cabo Verde Telecom.
- DE-CIX, 10 September 2026 — Atlantic Convergence 2026 and DE-CIX’s wider Atlantic digital-infrastructure strategy.
- DE-CIX Brazil — São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro exchanges and their integration into DE-CIX’s global interconnection ecosystem.
- DE-CIX São Paulo — current exchange services and direct interconnection with DE-CIX Lisbon and New York.