The owner of Sacom Timor-Leste company, Abílio Araújo, has committed to bringing a subsea fibre optic cable from Singapore to Timor-Leste.

After meeting with President José Manuel Ramos-Horta at Presidential Palace, Thursday (23 June 2022), Araújo said Sacom TL and their partner Inligo Networks met with the President to speak about economic development in Timor-Leste, particularly looking at what the Sacom Group can contribute in terms of [reducing] poverty and developing the country.

Sacom, together with their partner Inligo Networks, have developed a new company called Sacomtel TL, which has just received approval for work in the area of subsea cables. The Council of Ministers, through the 8th Government, and the National Communications Authority have approved this.

“I brought my partner Inligo Networks. This company has already developed subsea cables in many places and this investment is over USD800 million. A subsea cable will go from Singapore, through the Java Sea to Alor, then from there it will go east and come down to Darwin,” Araújo told journalists after meeting with Ramos-Horta.

Sacomtel TL’s investment in the subsea cable is 100% private and the subsea cable will be linked to the Inligo group’s international cable which is called Asia Connect Cable (ACC). A  company called Oceano IT has arrived in Timor to prepare for location [for the cable].

companies from around the world to come and keep their data in Timor. In the Asia Pacific region the country with the biggest Data Centre is Singapore, and now Singapore is at capacity because there is not enough energy in Singapore to add a new Data Centre.

“This new investment will develop the digital economy in Timor and we can become a centre for data, which will put Timor in the right place in the world,” Araújo said.  

Simon Zettl and  Abílio Araújo  with President José Manuel Ramos-Horta

Ramos-Horta was happy to hear about the new Sacomtel efforts and speak about developments in the future. He also invited Araujo to accompany him on an official visit to Indonesia in July.

Inligo Networks representative, Simon Zettl, said their role is to work with Sacom TL to connect the subsea cable to Timor-Leste. [He said] they will offer good technology services to help strengthen the foundations of technology in Timor-Leste.Inligo Networks Commercial Director Simon Zettl

Planning for the ACC-1 International Subsea Cable is well underway and when completed will provide Timor Leste with direct international connectivity across Asia and into the USA and Australia.