Trans Americas Fiber System's TAM-1 Subsea Cable Reaches Key Milestone with Panama Landing

TAM-1 Subsea Cable Lands in Panama, Marking Strategic Progress for Regional Connectivity

January 8, 2026

The successful landing of the TAM-1 (Trans Americas Mesh 1) submarine cable in Panama represents a significant advancement for digital infrastructure across the Americas, enhancing connectivity and data capacity in a region experiencing rapid digital growth. This milestone is crucial for reducing latency and improving network resilience for businesses and consumers throughout Central America and the Caribbean.

Trans Americas Fiber System (TAFS) announced that the 7,000-kilometer (4,349-mile) cable was landed at María Chiquita on Panama's north coast on December 27, 2025. This event marks a key step forward for the ambitious system, which is scheduled to be ready for service later this year. The TAM-1 cable will ultimately link Florida with multiple strategic locations, including Colombia, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and Costa Rica. Telecommunications giant AT&T serves as the anchor tenant and landing party for the system in all US jurisdictions.

The system is designed to offer substantial capacity, reportedly up to 650 terabits per second (Tbps), to meet escalating data demands. According to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) documents, TAFS has developed its own dedicated cable landing station at the María Chiquita site, a location already hosting other major cables like ARCOS and the Pacific Caribbean Cable System, and slated for the upcoming MANTA cable.

The completion of TAM-1 is expected to have a profound impact on the regional digital economy, providing a new, high-capacity backbone for cloud services, content delivery, and international business connectivity. It positions Panama as a growing hub for subsea infrastructure in Latin America. Furthermore, TAFS is reportedly planning a subsequent cable, dubbed TAM-2, which would connect Colombia and Ecuador, among other countries, to the TAM-1 network, indicating a long-term strategy to deepen mesh connectivity across the continent.

Source: datacenterdynamics