New Polar Cable Connects Yamal and Komi

A new 100-Gigabit fiber-optic cable has connected Salekhard and Labytnangi, two cities in the Yamal Nenets Autonomous District, Russian Arctic. A part of this 25-kilometer-long cable passes under the River Ob. The project’s completion was announced on 14 February 2022 by Russian telecom giant MTS. The new cable has enabled the company to link its digital infrastructure in Yamal to its telecommunication nodes located in the neighboring Arctic region of Komi.

The company believes that the project will contribute to a drastic increase in both traffic and data transmission speed and will help to greatly improve the stability and availability of digital communication services in the remote polar region. The cable is secured against hazards and is expected to withstand low temperatures and strong underwater currents for the years to come.

Putting the cable into operation marks an important milestone in terms of development of the Russian Arctic. Reliable and steady access to high-quality telecom services is crucial to this country’s northern regions. In this light, establishing a direct link between Yamal and Komi is seen as a meaningful step towards digitization in the Russian High North, while the experience gained under this project will provide valuable insight about steps to be taken to improve the connectivity of remote Arctic areas.