India’s largest mobile operator Reliance Jio Infocomm will land the multi-terabit India-Asia-Xpress (IAX) undersea cable system in Hulhumale, Maldives, according to a statement on Monday. The high capacity and high-speed IAX system will connect Hulhumale directly with world’s major internet hubs in India and Singapore. Jio’s IAX project will land in the Maldives in collaboration with Ocean Connect Maldives, the statement said.

The IAX system originates in Mumbai in the west and connects directly to Singapore, with branches including additional landings in India, Malaysia, and Thailand. The India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) system connects Mumbai to Milan, landing in Savona, Italy, and includes additional landings in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Mediterranean. IAX is expected to be ready for service end-2023, while IEX will be ready for service in mid-2024.

“These high capacity and high-speed systems will provide more than 200Tb/s of capacity at speeds of 100Gb/s, over 16,000 kilometers,” the statement informed. Speaking about the launch of the Maldives’ first international cable, its Minister of Economic Development, Uz Fayyaz Ismail, said, “This is the first stride towards enhancing our connectivity infrastructure and opening vast opportunities for our people through providing secure, affordable and high-quality services”. Ismail further observed: “We also aim to diversify our economy and establish ourselves as a key communications hub in South Asia”.

In addition to economic development, this would accelerate social development via high-speed internet access throughout the Maldives allowing it to attain the equitable development, Ismail added.

Reliance Jio President Mathew Oommen noted that today’s global economy is driven by low-latency broadband, connecting people, businesses content, and services. “IAX will not only connect Maldives to the world’s content hubs, but it will also support the explosive growth in data demand expected from the new initiatives being launched by the government of Maldives,” Oommen added.