TELUS announced the official start of work on the installation of its 125-km-long submarine fiber-optic cable that will run from Sept-Îles to Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, providing essential redundancy to the telecommunications network serving the communities between Baie-Comeau and Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon. The deployment of this critical infrastructure is made possible thanks to a joint investment of more than 20 million dollars by TELUS and the Government of Canada.
“This deployment marks the culmination of several years of careful planning and represents a major technological turning point for the North Shore,” said Nazim Benhadid, Chief Technology Officer of TELUS.
By anchoring this fiber-optic infrastructure on the seabed, we are creating a robust communications path that will ensure essential service continuity, especially during extreme weather conditions. Beyond the technology, this project will guarantee citizens reliable access to essential services, education, and healthcare. Investing in the resilience of our networks means investing in the future and prosperity of our communities and our country.
The new state-of-the-art underwater infrastructure will create a critical backup route that will ensure the maintenance of all telecommunications services in the event of a failure on the main terrestrial network on Highway 138 between Baie-Comeau and Sept-Îles. The cable is expected to be operational in the weeks following its installation, providing communities with a solid technological anchor to navigate through increasingly unpredictable and severe weather challenges.
“The entire population of Quebec should have access to reliable and affordable high-speed internet services,” said the Secretary of State (Rural Development), the Honourable Buckley Belanger.
The federal government’s investment, in collaboration with TELUS, will help improve network reliability for communities on the North Shore. The official start of this installation marks an important milestone in connectivity for these communities. The Government of Canada is proud to support this project with a financial contribution of up to USD 7.5 million.
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A Colossal Technological Challenge
This large-scale project, initially announced in 2020 and approved earlier this year, is being carried out in collaboration with IT International Telecom’s specialized teams. The cable-laying operations will last 10 to 15 days. IT International Telecom is mobilizing specialized vessels and precision equipment to ensure installation complies with the highest industry standards.
- The cable-laying work will be carried out by a cable ship equipped with seabed mapping instruments, sensors, and ultra-precise navigation systems for burying the cable.
- The cable will be nearly 125 km long and will have an approximate diameter of three centimeters.
- More than 120 km of cable will be buried at a depth of nearly one and a half meters, providing superior protection against potential damage.
- The submarine fiber-optic cable offers massive bandwidth capacity, ultra-low latency, and durability spanning several decades, while ensuring physical redundancy as part of TELUS’s diversified route strategy.
- During the cable installation, the team will leverage a detection system combining thermal imaging, AI, and human intelligence to prevent collisions and reduce noise impacts on marine mammals, a first in Canada.
“This project represents one of the most stimulating technical challenges our team has undertaken in Eastern Canada,” said Naoufal Nadir, Senior Project Manager at IT International Telecom.
We are deploying our expertise in submarine installation to create a robust link that will serve the North Shore communities for decades. Every meter of cable installed brings us closer to the goal of truly resilient connectivity for this strategic region.
This initiative is part of TELUS’s commitment to connect regions, supported by USD 70 billion in planned investments until 2029 allocated to infrastructure development, business expansion, and spectrum license acquisition.
