Insights

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) released on Tuesday a new legislation to formally extend the boundary of the Southern Sydney Submarine Cable Protection Zone. Google's Tabua cable will be the southernmost cable in the zone.

The latest ACMA legislation, the Submarine Cable (Southern Sydney Protection Zone) Declaration Variation 2025 (No. 1), was made under subclause 23(1) of Schedule 3A to the Telecommunications Act 1997.

In May 2025, the ACMA published a consultation paper, Proposal to vary the Submarine Cable (Southern Sydney Protection Zone) Declaration 2007, in response to a request from Perch Infrastructure Pty Ltd (Perch Infrastructure), a licensed carrier in Australia and a subsidiary of Google.

The Protection Zone Declaration currently provides protections to submarine cables of national significance landing at Tamarama Beach and Clovelly Beach, within a defined area referred to as the ‘Southern Sydney Protection Zone’. It restricts and prohibits activities that have the potential to cause damage to submarine cables installed within the Southern Sydney Protection Zone.

Since the making of the Protection Zone Declaration in July 2007, a further 5 submarine cables have been installed within the Southern Sydney Protection Zone and permits have been issued for the installation of 2 more cables.

Perch Infrastructure (Google) is proposing to install 2 of its forthcoming Tabua submarine cables from a landing point at Maroubra Beach, Sydney, outside the current protection zone boundaries. Tabua is one of two cables being built under Google’s Pacific Connect Initiative. The Tabua cable will be an international submarine cable, connecting Australia to the United States of America and Fiji. In addition to the landing point at Maroubra Beach, New South Wales, the Tabua cable will include a branch to the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.

Perch Infrastructure has sought that the ACMA vary the area of the Southern Sydney Protection Zone, to expand in a southern direction to enable the protection of its proposed Tabua cable. Perch Infrastructure has asked the ACMA to extend the southernmost boundary to 1,852 m from the outer edge of the Tabua cable. 

To support the ongoing demand for further submarine cables landing at Sydney, the ACMC proposed to vary the Protection Zone Declaration so that the southern-most boundary of the Southern Sydney Protection Zone is extended over Perch Infrastructure’s proposed Tabua submarine cable.

The ACMC proposed to increase the area of the existing protection zone by up to 4.1 km in a southerly direction to accommodate Perch Infrastructure’s proposed installation. The ACMC also proposed that each of the existing prohibitions and restrictions under the Protection Zone Declaration apply within the additional area of the zone.

While there was some opposition to the plan, notably from other coastal water users such as commercial fishing operators, the only telco to respond - Telstra - was in favour of the extension. Telstra supports this proposal as it enables the deployment of additional submarine cable infrastructure.

The enlarged Southern Sydney Protection Zone will also enhance the protection of the existing Southern Cross and Australia Japan cables as they will be located further from the southern boundary of this zone.

The ACMA released a declaration on Tuesday to formally extend the boundary of the Southern Sydney Submarine Cable Protection Zone. This instrument extends the southern boundary line of the Southern Sydney Protection zone up to 4.1 km south, over the Tabua submarine cable.

ACMA said it made “one minor change” that would allow the NSW government “to continue to use two fish aggregating devices at defined locations within the extended area of the protection zone”.