NZ data centre builder contracts for new trans-Tasman link

A "Tasman Ring" submarine cable network connecting Australia and New Zealand has reached a milestone, with Datagrid New Zealand signing a pair of delivery contracts with Malaysia's OMS Group, and Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN).

OMS will do the marine survey for the Tasman Ring cable, which will then be supplied by ASN under the contracts with Datagrid NZ as the first international data link to NZ's South Island.

For the marine survey, OMS will use a long-range unmanned surface vessel (USV) which does not have a crew.

Tasman Ring Network will span 2300 kilometres and run between the South Island city of Invercargill, and Melbourne in Victoria.

Datagrid NZ is planning to build what it terms an "AI factory" in Invercargill.

The cable will have at least eight fibre pairs and a design capacity of 160 terabits per second, Datagrid NZ said.

Datagrid's head of connectivity Pierre Goiffon explained to iTnews that the link will have an Open Cable system that separates optical circuit from the transmission equipment.

"The cable will land in Torquay [Victoria], where other submarine cables have recently landed," he said.

"From there, a terrestrial backhaul will extend the cable to Melbourne," Goiffon said who added that the cable will have a ready for service target of 2029.

Rémi Galasso, Datagrid's chief executive, said the Tasman Ring Network will benefit South Island universities, research centres and IT companies with improved latency (data packet delay) by up to 45 percent, compared to existing routes via the North Island.

Goiffon said this means latency between Invercargill and Australia will reduce by a minimum of 19ms roundtrip delay time compared to using North Island routes. 

In 2024, Datagrid NZ signed a memorandum of understanding with NZ fibre to the premises infrastructure provider, ASX listed Chorus, to explore the feasibility of a subsea cable project, also named Tasman Ring Network.

The original 6000km Tasman Ring Network design was set to span Invercargill, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland, with regional towns New Plymouth, North Island, and Greymouth in the South Island connected via a coastal route.

Asked if Chorus is involved in the current project a spokesperson confirmed that the company is not.

"Our memorandum of understanding and engagement with Datagrid ended as the project did not meet our investment criteria," Chorus said in its financial year 2025 results.

Prior to that, Intelia NZ which is also founded by Galasso, had announced another cable project, Te Waipounamu, linking Invercargill with Sydney and Melbourne, in 2024.

Goiffon told iTnews that the Tasman Ring Network has effectively superseded Te Waipounamu cable project.

"Today we announce the signature of the supply and installation contract for the first phase of the Tasman Ring Network project which provides connectivity from Invercargill to Melbourne with an option to build the rest of the system at a later stage," Goiffon said.

Galasso also tried to get an earlier cable system into the sea in 2020, again linking to Melbourne and Sydney, but also the Scott - McMurdo Antarctic bases, and the Mangawhai landing for the Hawaiki link to the United States in the North Island.

Earlier in July, New Zealand power gentailer Mercury announced that it had taken a 12.7 percent minority equity stake in Datagrid, for NZ$53 million ($44.2 million).

The deal followed a power purchase agreement in March 2026 between Mercury and Datagrid to supply 140 megawatts for the planned data centre facility.