SYDNEY, Australia – September 23, 2025 – Equinix, the world’s digital infrastructure company®, today announced it has been selected by SUBCO for the landing of its new SMAP subsea cable system directly into its International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) data centres in Perth and Sydney as well as SMAP’s Points of Presence (PoP) in Adelaide and Melbourne. This partnership will provide enhanced high-speed network connections between Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, along with onward routes to Asia and Europe via inter-regional subsea cables such as Indigo West and the Oman Australia Cable (OAC), both hosted at Equinix campus in Perth. Enhanced connectivity with low-latency, high-speed networks and robust infrastructure will attract investment into metros like Perth.
While Sydney has long been a key connectivity hub in Australia, Perth has emerged as a vital digital gateway linking Australia to international markets. In 2025, year-to-date as at the end of August, Equinix Internet Exchange® traffic nationwide continues to accelerate, growing by 51% compared to the same period in 2024. This significant surge is driven by the increasing adoption of cloud services and AI, along with the Government’s initiatives to promote digitisation, 5G adoption and smart city development.
Bevan Slattery, Founder of SUBCO, said: "Partnering with Equinix to connect SMAP in its ecosystem-dense data centres enables us to more seamlessly interconnect the many network providers within Equinix facilities as well as our other subsea cable assets in Perth and Sydney. This is especially important due to Perth’s strategic position as Australia’s new secure gateway to Asia and Europe. The SMAP cable sets a new benchmark for high-capacity, low-latency connectivity, empowering businesses in our increasingly interconnected world."
The SMAP cable will enhance Perth’s global connectivity by providing a direct, high-capacity route through Australia, connecting Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Sydney for the first time via a subsea cable. Landing SMAP in Equinix will enable fast, low-latency data transfers with unparalleled reliability for organisations co-locating in Equinix facilities. By providing redundant routes, SMAP will be able to mitigate congestion and network outages, ensuring seamless global connectivity.
Additionally, Equinix’s vendor-neutral, multi-tenant design allows SMAP customers to access enterprises, cloud on-ramps, and service providers within the same IBX, leveraging interconnection opportunities to enhance network performance and reduce connectivity costs. This architecture ensures faster data traffic delivery and an optimal user experience.
Guy Danskine, Managing Director of Equinix Australia, said: “The SMAP cable will further enhance Australia’s digital infrastructure, helping businesses scale and thrive in our growing digital economy. This direct link between Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth provides a critical alternate and redundant path, enhancing resilience to Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe, and further establishing Australia as a global connectivity hub.”
With IBX data centres in 77metros, many of which host key subsea cable landing sites, Equinix remains a trusted partner for turning bandwidth into collaboration and innovation opportunities. By deploying the SMAP cable, Equinix continues to empower enterprises with robust, scalable and sustainable connectivity solutions.
Key SMAP Facts:
- Direct National Connectivity: Expected to be operational in Q1 2026, SMAP is a 5,000 km state-of-the-art transcontinental system designed to support the digital economy. It connects Sydney, Melbourne (Torquay), Adelaide, and Perth, powered by 16 fibre pairs with fully armoured protection for resilience and a 400Tbps capacity.
- Next Generation Infrastructure: Forms the first stage of HyperOne, Australia’s first national fibre backhaul network.
- Global Connectivity: Provides seamless access to Southeast Asia via Indigo West, and to Europe and the Middle East via OAC.
- Enhanced Resilience: Reduces congestion and mitigates network outages by offering redundant routes.
- Sustainability: Aims to become the world’s first fully zero-carbon long-haul subsea cable system by integrating renewable energy infrastructure at landing stations.
Additional Resources
- Learn more about SUBCO SMAP Cable [website]
- Emerging Tech Trends in Australia: What to Expect in 2025 [blog]
- What is a Cable Landing Station [blog]
- Australia’s Prime Minister Switches on New Low-Latency Subsea Cable [blog]
About Equinix
Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX) shortens the path to boundless connectivity anywhere in the world. Its digital infrastructure, data centre footprint and interconnected ecosystems empower innovations that enhance our work, life and planet. Equinix connects economies, countries, organizations and communities, delivering seamless digital experiences and cutting-edge AI — quickly, efficiently and everywhere.
About SUBCO
Founded by industry veteran Bevan Slattery, SUBCO is a specialist consulting and investment company focusing on assisting the development of submarine cable projects and potentially investing in specialist projects alongside infrastructure investment partners. Previous projects undertaken by the management team include Sydney to Guam Cable (PPC-1), Sydney to Los Angeles (Endeavour & AAG), Singapore to Perth Cable (Indigo West), Australia’s first transcontinental fibre optic submarine cable (Indigo Central) and the Oman-Australia cable, which directly connects Australia with Oman.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from expectations discussed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, risks to our business and operating results related to the current inflationary environment; foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; stock price fluctuations; increased costs to procure power and the general volatility in the global energy market; the challenges of building, and operating, IBX and xScale data centers, including related to sourcing suitable power and land, and any supply chain constraints or increased costs of supplies; the challenges of developing, deploying and delivering Equinix products and solutions; unanticipated costs or difficulties relating to the integration of companies we have acquired or will acquire into Equinix; a failure to receive significant revenues from customers in recently built out or acquired data centers; failure to complete any financing arrangements contemplated from time to time; competition from existing and new competitors; the ability to generate sufficient cash flow or otherwise obtain funds to repay new or outstanding indebtedness; the loss or decline in business from our key customers; risks related to our taxation as a REIT; risks related to regulatory inquiries or litigation and other risks described from time to time in Equinix filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, see recent and upcoming Equinix quarterly and annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, copies of which are available upon request from Equinix. Equinix does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this press release.
Media Contact (Asia-Pacific)
Annie Ho
annho@ap.equinix.com
Media Contacts (Australia)
Graham White
graham@pratar.com.au
0404 840533