Hexa gets USTDA grant for Malaysia-US cable feasibility study
The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has awarded a feasibility study grant to Malaysia’s Hexa Capital Consultancy to develop what would be the first subsea cable system directly connecting Malaysia and the US.
Malaysia currently connects to 18 international subsea cable systems, but of those, only the Asia-America Gateway (AAG) club cable connects to the US.
Hexa says that the MYUS cable is expected to be just over 19,220 km with six landing stations in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. MYUS will also have three landing stations in US states and territories across the Pacific.
No details have yet been given about the MYUS cable in terms of planned capacity.
Hexa has already selected T Soja & Associates to conduct the study, which will provide Hexa with detailed plans to guide the project’s implementation.
USTDA director Enoh T. Ebong said in a statement that the MYUS cable would add cost-effective digital connectivity capacity and “increase access to reliable and affordable digital services across Southeast Asia, including remote and underserved areas, while creating a secure communications link between the region and the United States.”
Hexa CEO Dr. Abang Azhari Hadari added that the MYUS cable would help to "support the implementation of 5G wireless services and further investment in data centres.”
The grant was announced on the sidelines of the APEC CEO Summit in San Francisco.
