The Vice President of the Azores Government expressed gratitude towards Google for their strategic investment in the Azores, highlighting the region’s growing significance in digitalization. Artur Lima publicly thanked Google Portugal, Google Iberia, and the multinational branch for recognizing the Azores’ strategic connectivity between the United States and Europe.
Google announced the launch of the Sol submarine cable connecting the US, Bermuda, Azores, and Spain. This will integrate with the previously announced Nuvem cable from 2023.
Lima emphasized the government’s dedicated efforts in negotiations with Google, involving frequent meetings with Google’s executives in Portugal and Madrid, conducted discreetly to facilitate these discussions.
The launch of the new submarine cable underscores the geostrategic importance of the Azores for transatlantic communication systems, according to Lima. He noted that while the archipelago was traditionally known for its geography, it is now gaining recognition for digitalization and international communication networks, with São Miguel Island hosting another submarine cable installation.
The Sol cable will be manufactured in the US and is expected to enhance the capacity and reliability of Google’s global Cloud network, meeting increasing customer demand for Google Cloud and AI services across regions.
The Sol cable is poised to bolster transatlantic connectivity alongside the Nuvem cable, with terrestrial integrations across the Azores, Bermuda, the US, and the Iberian Peninsula, according to Google.
Google announced on its blog the introduction of Sol, a new transatlantic submarine cable system connecting the US, Bermuda, Azores, and Spain, with the name referencing its warm-climate landing points.
Palm Coast, Florida, will serve as the landing point for Sol in the US. Google will collaborate with DC BLOX for the cable anchoring and establish a new connectivity hub in the state known as the “Sunshine State,” with a terrestrial route linking Palm Coast to its Cloud region in South Carolina.
