DE-CIX and CVTelecom Propose South Atlantic Data Corridor Between Lisbon and São Paulo

DE-CIX and CVTelecom have announced a Letter of Intent to explore a South Atlantic data corridor that would link Lisbon, Portugal, with São Paulo, Brazil. The proposal centers on using Cape Verde's geographic position to route traffic more directly between Europe, West Africa, and Latin America. The stated aim is to offer shorter, more resilient paths than the common northbound routes that currently pass through Northern Europe or North America.

CVTelecom would supply transport capacity for the subsea or regional segments that form the Lisbon–São Paulo connection. DE-CIX would bring its interconnection services to the route, extending its exchange ecosystem and enabling networks to exchange traffic more directly. The arrangement would extend CVTelecom's reach into major exchange points such as Frankfurt, Madrid, Marseille, New York, and São Paulo, while giving DE-CIX dedicated capacity across the South Atlantic link.

Shorter routes can lower latency and improve performance for latency-sensitive applications, including VoIP and cloud-hosted services. A direct southern corridor could also diversify traffic paths, offering an alternative when traditional northbound routes are congested or disrupted. For carriers, cloud providers, content platforms, and enterprises that need predictable international performance, a new corridor could provide both speed and redundancy.

Strategic role for Cape Verde and West Africa

Commercial appeal and potential customers

The model targets carriers, cloud providers, and content platforms that value lower latency and more direct peering and transit options. Dedicated capacity across the South Atlantic route combined with DE-CIX's interconnection services could appeal to networks seeking alternative paths for traffic and new peering opportunities. Enterprises migrating workloads to cloud platforms or running real-time communications would be among the likely beneficiaries if the corridor is built.

Key signals to follow are formal agreements beyond the Letter of Intent, detailed route and capacity plans, regulatory approvals in the involved jurisdictions, and any anchor customers or investors committing capacity or funding. Those moves would indicate whether the project has the commercial traction needed to proceed toward deployment.

The DE-CIX/CVTelecom proposal is a strategic attempt to create a more direct South Atlantic route linking Europe, West Africa, and Latin America. It could reduce latency and add resilience if built, but it remains at an exploratory stage and will need concrete commercial, regulatory, and operational commitments to move forward.