Workers install an undersea fiber optic cable system in South Africa in February 2023 (Illustration photo: Reuters).
Reuters quoted a source as saying that China's three major carriers, China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile, are outlining the most modern and far-reaching undersea fiber optic cable network.
The proposed project, called the EMA, would connect Hong Kong to China's Hainan province, before looping on to Singapore, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and France.
The project cost is estimated at $500 million. The cable system will be manufactured and installed by Chinese company HMN Technologies. Sources said HMN Technologies will receive support from the Chinese government to make the fiber optic cable.
The above enterprises have not yet commented on this information. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the country always encourages enterprises to invest and cooperate with foreign countries, but did not directly mention the EMA fiber optic cable project.
The information comes as the US government, concerned about Beijing's collection of internet data, has successfully blocked a number of submarine fiber optic cable projects that China has wanted to build overseas over the past four years.
Undersea cables carry more than 95% of international internet traffic. For years, these high-speed lines have been owned by a handful of telecommunications and technology companies that have invested money to build vast networks to keep data moving smoothly around the world . But those cables are also vulnerable to surveillance and sabotage, making them a weapon of influence in the increasingly fierce competition between the United States and China.
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