PTCL Lands Africa-1 Subsea Cable in Karachi, Pakistan

Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) has landed the Africa-1 submarine cable ashore at its landing station in Karachi. PTCL announced in a statement on Saturday February 22, 2025.

The 10,000-kilometer Africa-1 cable, a consortium-backed ultra-high-capacity system, aims to bolster international bandwidth and support Pakistan’s growing digital infrastructure, enhancing Pakistan’s connectivity with Saudi Arabia and other global digital hubs.

The Africa-1 cable system will link Pakistan with key locations in the Middle East and beyond, including countries like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, France, Kenya and Djibouti.

“PTCL is proud to be a part of the Africa-1 cable system consortium. This partnership aligns seamlessly with Pakistan’s Digital Vision 2030 and our commitment to empowering the communities by bridging the digital divide,” said Syed Muhammad Shoaib, Group Vice President of International Business at PTCL.

“By establishing strong, reliable connections to key international hubs, PTCL aims to provide faster, world-class Internet services enabling innovation across sectors and strengthening Pakistan’s position in the global economy,” he added.

The Africa-1 consortium comprises Saudi Arabia’s Mobily, UAE’s e& and G42, Telecom Egypt, Zain Oman International (ZOI), Algérie Télécom and TeleYemen.

Supplied by Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN), the Africa-1 cable system employs state-of-the-art technologies to enhance data transmission speeds and reliability, with 8 fibre pairs and a total system capacity of 96 Tbps (terabits per second).

Landing at the PTCL's Karachi cable landing station, the Africa-1 cable system will be terminated at PTCL’s Misrishah Exchange in DHA Phase-VI, Karachi.

Once operational in early 2026, the Africa-1 cable system is expected to significantly enhance PTCL’s Internet services and support the country’s economic growth by providing improved global connectivity.

Prior to the landing in Karachi, Mobily landed the Africa-1 submarine cable in Duba, Saudi Arabia in earlier February.