Google’s Nuvem Subsea Cable Makes Landfall in Portugal, Strengthening Transatlantic Connectivity

Google has officially landed its Nuvem subsea cable in Portugal, marking a significant milestone for the company’s transatlantic infrastructure expansion. The cable, whose name means “cloud” in Portuguese, made landfall this week in the port city of Sines, located approximately 150 kilometers south of Lisbon.

First announced in September 2023, the Nuvem cable spans roughly 7,000 kilometers (4,349 miles) and is equipped with 16 fiber pairs, delivering a total capacity of 384 terabits per second. The system is designed to connect Portugal and the Azores with Bermuda and the United States, with commercial service expected to commence later this year. In May, the cable landed in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, at a cable landing station owned by DC Blox.

“Nuvem marks Google's second major cable project in Portugal, following Equiano in 2022 and preceding the upcoming Nuvem and Sol cable landings in the Azores,” said Giorgia Abeltino, head of government affairs and public policy for Google Cloud Europe, Middle East & Africa. “Subsea cables carry the overwhelming majority of the world's data traffic - they are the invisible backbone of everything from AI to digital public services.”

In addition to the landing station in Sines, which Google is developing itself, the company is building another cable landing station in Lagoa on São Miguel island in the Azores to accommodate both the Nuvem and Sol cables. Google is also developing a landing station in Annie’s Bay, Bermuda. Portuguese telecommunications operator MEO has joined the project as an investor, further strengthening the local connectivity ecosystem.

“Submarine cables are the invisible backbone of the digital economy, carrying the vast majority of international internet traffic. As demand for cloud, AI and digital services continues to grow, resilient and diverse international connectivity becomes more important than ever,” said Nuno Cadima, COO of MEO. “I am proud that MEO is part of this journey as Google’s national partner in the Nuvem system. Together, we are strengthening Portugal’s international connectivity and helping prepare our networks for the needs of the future.”

The Nuvem cable is the latest in a series of major subsea investments by Google in the Atlantic region, underscoring the growing importance of robust, high-capacity infrastructure to support the escalating demands of cloud computing and artificial intelligence workloads.