From 5 undersea connecting shafts to the first international cable line owned by Vietnamese people

With a multi-directional, large-capacity submarine cable system and a technology mastery strategy, Viettel not only leads the telecommunications market, but is also playing a pioneering role in creating national digital infrastructure.

The digital economic blood vessels are clear thanks to the "undersea highway"

Under the ocean, thousands of data streams are constantly moving at high speed through undersea fiber optic cables, connecting Vietnam with major data centers (TTDL) such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and reaching as far as Europe and America.

Behind every online meeting, every cross-border transaction or simply a click to watch a video, send an email, or order food from a foreign application is the stable operation of a modern and complex digital infrastructure system. In that global network, Viettel is one of the key units, ensuring international transmission infrastructure, contributing to maintaining a smooth flow of data from Vietnam to the world.

In fact, undersea fiber optic cables are the "blood vessels" of the digital economy. They operate silently under the ocean floor, but play a vital role in connecting global data - from trade and finance to education and entertainment. International connectivity is not only an infrastructure need, but also a prerequisite for ensuring global interoperability.

Today, more than 98% of the world's data traffic is transmitted via undersea fiber optic cables, ensuring stable speeds and Internet continuity - which has become the backbone of e-commerce, cloud computing, AI and digital services.

The ADC fiber optic cable line has a design capacity of 20 Tbps, twice as large as the largest cable line connecting to Vietnam.

Realizing the importance of that, more than 15 years ago, Viettel started its journey of investing in submarine fiber optic cables with the AAG line - the first cable line connecting Southeast Asia with the US. After that, Viettel continued to expand Vietnam's data connection with the world through the lines IA (Intra Asia), APG (Asia Pacific Gateway), AAE-1 (Asia-Africa-Europe 1) and most recently ADC (Asia Direct Cable).

Among them, IA is currently the route with the lowest latency from Vietnam to Singapore, and Viettel is the only network operator in Vietnam operating a landing station. AAE-1 is the only cable route that directly connects Vietnam to Europe and Africa. ADC is the newest pride, with a maximum capacity of up to 50 Tbps, directly connecting all three leading Internet centers in Asia including Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.

The ADC line is a clear demonstration of Viettel's cross-border connectivity capability. Viettel Solutions - a member of Viettel and also a core unit in building strategies and implementing large-scale digital infrastructure projects, announced the inauguration of the cable line in December 2024 and officially put it into commercial operation last April.

With the investment of 9 leading telecommunications corporations in Asia, ADC is the super-highway with the largest capacity that has been put into operation in Vietnam up to now. Moreover, in Vietnam, Viettel is the only unit that owns the ADC landing station in Quy Nhon, contributing to making this place a potential data transit point on the digital map of Asia.

The ADC route helps Vietnamese data go directly to the largest Internet centers in the region. "That is a prerequisite for us to become a Digital Hub - the data center of Southeast Asia," said Mr. Doan Dai Phong, Deputy General Director of Viettel Solutions.

To date, Viettel has operated 5 international submarine cable lines, accounting for 65% of Vietnam's total international connection capacity, leading the market in both bandwidth and infrastructure capacity. This is the foundation for Internet, cloud, AI, 5G/6G services and a series of other digital applications that Vietnamese people use every day.

It is the spirit of "working hard" that is part of Viettel's DNA that has helped the team of engineers, managers, and coordinators overcome countless legal challenges, or the lack of capable contractors..., to lay each kilometer of cable on the seabed, connecting Vietnam with the world.

Viettel and the aspiration to master the first submarine cable line

Not stopping at the 5 operating routes, Viettel aims to participate in and exploit a total of 10 international submarine fiber optic cable routes by 2030, in line with the national digital infrastructure development orientation set forth by the Government in Resolution 71.

Notably, among these fiber optic cable lines, at least one will be completely owned by Viettel, from the design and technology selection to the implementation and operation. This is unprecedented in the Vietnamese telecommunications industry.

"The project has the largest capacity and lowest latency, expected to be operational in 2028 and directly connect Vietnam with Singapore - Asia's data gateway. This affirms Viettel's ability to completely master technology and international connection strategy, while establishing national capacity in the field of strategic digital infrastructure," said Mr. Doan Dai Phong, Deputy General Director of Viettel Solutions.

From 2025, Viettel will undertake the deployment of 5 new international submarine cable lines. Thus, Viettel will undertake at least 50% of the national target set by the Government according to the "Strategy for developing Vietnam's international optical cable system to 2030, with a vision to 2035". This once again clearly demonstrates Viettel's pioneering role in the national telecommunications strategy.

Along with that, investing in submarine cable infrastructure is also part of Viettel 4.0 strategy, transforming from a traditional telecommunications company (Telco) to a modern technology company (Techco). In particular, international connection infrastructure is considered a pillar to deploy digital services such as cloud, AI, IoT, 5G/6G...

With a multi-directional, large-capacity submarine cable system and a strategy of mastering technology, Viettel not only leads the telecommunications market, but is also playing a pioneering role in creating national digital infrastructure. From there, Vietnam will gradually become an important link in the regional data network./.

According to Vietnam Science and Technology Journal

Source: https://mst.gov.vn/tu-5-truc-ket-noi-duoi-day-bien-den-tuyen-cap-quoc-te-dau-tien-do-nguoi-viet-lam-chu-197251025161947699.htm