The EllaLink telecommunications cable, which covers 6000 kilometers, recently anchored in Sines, 1300 km of which in waters under national sovereignty or jurisdiction.

As part of the program of the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the European Atlantic data platform will be launched in early June and the underwater optical fiber cable between Sines and Fortaleza, in Brazil, will be inaugurated.

This platform represents the reinforcement of the capacity to reposition Portugal as a central country in the Atlantic, functioning as a connection point between America, Africa and Europe and also as a privileged space of contact between the countries of the South Atlantic and the Northeast Atlantic. In addition to Cape EllaLink, another submarine cable, Equiano, will depart from Cape Town, South Africa, to Sesimbra, uniting several African countries to Europe.

The laying of telecommunications cables on Portuguese soil and subsoil today can be done safeguarding vulnerable marine ecosystems. The National Maritime Spatial Situation Plan (PSOEM) does not allow the laying of submarine cables in places where vulnerable marine ecosystems occur, such as coral gardens and cold water sponges.

To ensure proper compliance with these requirements, each submarine cable is authorized through a Title of Private Use of the Public Domain (TUPEM), issued by DGRM - Directorate-General for Natural Resources, Safety and Maritime Services.