Brazil

Gateway to the South Atlantic

Brazil sits at the intersection of two critical submarine cable corridors: the transatlantic routes connecting South America to Europe and Africa, and the north-south routes running up through the Caribbean toward North America. That position makes it one of the most significant cable landing countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region, with several active systems already in service and at least one further system in the pipeline.

The active cable portfolio includes AMX-1, operated by América Móvil and commissioned in 2014, alongside Monet, which entered service in 2017. SACS — the South Atlantic Cable System — brought a direct link between Brazil and Angola online in 2018, representing one of the relatively few cables to cross the South Atlantic on a southern trajectory toward Africa rather than looping through Europe. ATLANTIS-2 adds further transatlantic capacity at 12,000 kilometres, while AMERICAS-1 SOUTH, ATLANTIS and Seabras-1 round out a cable mix that collectively spans multiple ownership groups and route geometries. SAex, the South Atlantic Express Cable, was planned with a 2021 ready-for-service date, though its operational status warrants verification.

Landing Points and Geographic Logic

Fortaleza, on Brazil's northeastern tip, functions as the country's primary cable hub. Its prominence is no accident: the city's latitude minimises cable length to both the Caribbean and West Africa, and the shallow continental shelf geometry in the region simplifies marine routing. Fernando de Noronha, the archipelago roughly 350 kilometres offshore, appears as a landing or waypoint for at least one system, reflecting how island territories can serve as useful intermediate nodes on long ocean segments. Praia Grande, near São Paulo on the southeastern coast, provides a separate entry point that serves Brazil's largest commercial and population centre — a geographic diversification that reduces the risk of a single coastal event disrupting the country's international links.

Capacity and Resilience

The spread of cables across multiple landing points and at least two distinct coastline regions — northeast and southeast — provides a degree of physical resilience. Multiple active systems from different operators and different commissioning eras also mean the country is not wholly dependent on any single cable generation or ownership structure. That said, the concentration of systems at Fortaleza means the northeastern cluster of landing infrastructure carries disproportionate traffic weight. The variety of route directions — toward North America, Europe and Africa — gives Brazil broader international reach than most of its regional neighbours.