Heaptalk, Jakarta — PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin), a subsidiary of Telkom Indonesia, entered a partnership with SingTel to develop a new submarine cable communication system connecting Singapore and Batam, Indonesia.
The system is part of the newly established Indonesia Singapore Cable System (Insica) Consortium. Insica will present a submarine cable comprising 24 fiber optic pairs and two diverse terrestrial cable routes, offering a maximum capacity of up to 20 terabits per second per fiber optic pair. This capability will provide superior bandwidth, seamless connectivity, and robust network security. Additionally, this infrastructure will enable efficient resource sharing and scalability.
Furthermore, the diverse new routes provided by Insica will enhance network protection and reliability, ensuring data centers operate 24/7 without interruption. The 100 km Insica cable system is expected to support the surge in data center telecommunications traffic between Singapore and Batam. This infrastructure is targeted to commence operations in Q4 2026.
Batam and Singapore for data center investments
Vice President of Digital Infrastructure & Services at SingTel, Ooi Seng Keat, revealed that Batam is emerging as a prime location for data centers due to its proximity to Singapore. With this cable system, both parties can enhance connectivity between the two countries to support AI workloads with higher power density requirements from enterprises and cloud companies. “The development of the Insica cable system is a step we are taking to design a hyper-connected digital ecosystem to meet long-term demand, to realize the digital future of this region and boost the regional economy,” Ooi Seng Keat said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Telin CEO Budi Satria Dharma Purba sees the global submarine cable market as poised for unprecedented growth, making Batam and Singapore prime locations for future data center investments. Southeast Asia’s data center sector is experiencing rapid growth driven by advancements in AI, cloud computing, e-commerce, IoT, edge computing, and 5G. This growth is attracting a wave of investments from both established players and newcomers.
Direct connectivity between data centers will also support the implementation of new technologies, such as the Internet of Things, robotics, AI, and data analytics, which require high bandwidth and low latency for commercial-scale and real-time applications. “The Insica submarine cable will meet the critical need for data center interconnectivity among these key strategic locations,” Budi concluded.
