Full Breakdown
Meta’s Petal Cable: A Petabit-Scale Transatlantic Link
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Announcement – Petal Subsea Cable Project
In September 2026 Meta Platforms announced the development of Petal, a transatlantic optical submarine cable that will connect the United States and France. The system is slated to enter service in 2029 and is described by Meta as the first subsea cable to deliver one petabit per second (1 000 terabits per second) of capacity across an ocean.
Background & Context
Submarine cables carry roughly 99 % of intercontinental internet traffic. Meta, already a major investor in subsea infrastructure, has participated in more than 20 international cable projects, including the 2Africa system and the Project Waterworth initiative.
Technical Design & Capacity
Petal will span approximately 7 000 km (about 4 350 miles) between landing points on the Atlantic coasts of the United States and France. Its key feature is multi-core fiber technology, employing two-core fibers within a 24-pair (48-fiber) system. This design allows the cable to transmit twice the data of today’s most advanced transoceanic cables without a proportional increase in power consumption or physical infrastructure. Meta notes that the capacity equals the bandwidth required for roughly 75 % of the world’s population to stream music simultaneously.
Partners and Roles
- Meta Platforms – project sponsor, funder, and future operator.
- NEC – overall system design and construction.
- Sumitomo Electric Industries – supplier of the optical fiber.
- Orange International Networks – French landing and integration with the European terrestrial network.
Data & Statistics
- Length: ~7 000 km (4 350 miles).
- Capacity: 1 petabit /s (1 000 terabits /s), roughly double the best existing transatlantic cables.
- Throughput: 125 000 GB per second (NEC).
- Projected cost: comparable transatlantic cables cost US$300-400 million; Petal’s exact cost is undisclosed.
Official Statements & Responses
NEC’s director of submarine business development called the deployment “a very significant project” for the company’s growth. Orange’s executive highlighted the partnership as a reinforcement of its commitment to reliable infrastructure and security of the terrestrial segment linked to the subsea system.
Verbatim Quote
- “Being able to deploy the cable with our new technology in the main transatlantic corridor makes this a very significant project in terms of our future growth,” — Takahiro Kashima
What’s Next
Petal is scheduled to become operational in 2029, at which point Meta will fund and operate the system while NEC completes construction, Sumitomo Electric supplies the fiber, and Orange manages the French landing. No further milestones have been publicly detailed beyond the 2029 service entry.