June, 2026
Firmus and SUBCO to Build Bernacchi-1
Firmus and SUBCO have announced a landmark agreement to build Bernacchi-1, a new submarine fibre optic cable connecting Tasmania to mainland Australia — the state's first new sub-sea fibre connection in over 20 years.
Firmus and SUBCO today announced a landmark agreement to build a new submarine fibre optic cable connecting Tasmania to mainland Australia, significantly expanding the state's digital capacity and supporting the next generation of AI infrastructure.
The new cable, to be named Bernacchi-1 in honour of pioneering Tasmanian-raised scientist and Antarctic explorer Louis Bernacchi, will connect Tasmania into SUBCO's SMAP cable system between Sydney and Melbourne.
Underwritten by Firmus, this represents a major private-sector led investment in Tasmania's digital infrastructure, for the benefit of all Tasmanians for generations to come. This investment builds on SUBCO's previous investment in the 5,000km SMAP cable connecting Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.
Bernacchi-1 will be the first new fibre connection between Tasmania and mainland Australia in more than 20 years and will deliver more than 60 terabits per second of additional capacity to the state on day one — more than all existing Bass Strait fibre cables combined.
Branching into SUBCO's new SMAP cable system and landing in Northern Tasmania (subject to finalisation of relevant marine and landing permits), Bernacchi-1 provides dual pathways to the mainland — North-West to Melbourne, and North-East to Sydney. The path to Sydney is significant as the first time Tasmania has had a direct connection to New South Wales, from where the majority of Australia's overseas sub-sea cables land.
In addition to over doubling connectivity to the mainland, Bernacchi-1 substantially increases resilience for Tasmania's digital economy, expands options for Tasmanian consumers, and enables faster connections to the global internet.
Bernacchi-1 is part of the broader dividend for Australia and regional communities from the investment Firmus is making in its Australia-wide AI Factory buildout, Project Southgate.
SUBCO will build and operate the cable as part of its SMAP cable system, which is on track to be ready for service in June 2026, with the Tasmanian branch expected to be operational in Q2 2027.
This significant private investment will strengthen Tasmania's digital future, boosting capacity, resilience and connectivity. The AI revolution is here and Tasmania is in a strong position to benefit from the jobs and infrastructure being delivered as part of this change. Our Government backs business and welcomes private investment, and we look forward to continuing to work with Firmus on opportunities in our State.
I've been trying to build a new fibre route between Tasmania and the mainland for over a decade to bring much needed diversity, resiliency and cheaper connectivity to Australia and the world. Bernacchi-1 for me is a great example of how Australia can leverage AI to create new sovereign owned infrastructure capability for the benefit of the nation as a whole — and this simply would not have happened without Firmus' significant investment and underwriting the long-term operations.
We're re-wiring Australia's digital infrastructure to make Australia one of the world's largest exporters of AI Tokens. Investing in the critical sub-sea connectivity infrastructure required for this task is another example of Firmus leadership as a full-stack AI Factory Platform company.
About the Name
Louis Bernacchi (1876–1942) was an Australian-Italian physicist raised in Tasmania who, in 1898, became the first Tasmanian and first Australian to overwinter on Antarctica, conducting the first sustained scientific observations ever recorded on the continent.
The Bernacchi-1 cable carries his name in recognition of Tasmania's enduring role as a launchpad for global frontier infrastructure — from polar science then, to AI and digital connectivity now.
About SUBCO
SUBCO is a leading developer, owner and operator of next-generation submarine cable infrastructure.
Since its founding in 2016, SUBCO has delivered some of the world's most innovative and strategically significant cable systems — including INDIGO West, INDIGO Central, the Oman Australia Cable (OAC), and SMAP, Australia's first fully armoured transcontinental submarine cable purpose-built for hyperscale and AI workloads.
APX East, a direct Australia–US express system, is currently in development with an RFS target of 2028. Through this growing portfolio, SUBCO has played a pivotal role in expanding Australia's international connectivity, strengthening the nation's position as a major digital hub in the Indo-Pacific region.
About SMAP
A new transcontinental submarine cable system connecting Sydney, Melbourne (Torquay), Adelaide and Perth, with an extended branch to Tasmania coming early-mid 2027.
SMAP boasts 16 fibre pairs, full armouring and space division multiplexing (SDM) technology to deliver a total of 400Tbps. It is set to become one of the world's largest capacity undersea cables, Australia's first hypercable, and the first subsea cable to connect all five states.