Broadband connectivity could be an issue for Italian islands, even the major ones like Sicily and Sardinia. It's one of the problems that Italian Recovery Plan and local Telcos investments are addressing, but also global operators are a factor to be considered. Also because of Italy's central position in the Mediterranean, that turns into a sort of bridge towards lucrative Eastern digital markets.

British company EXA Infrastructure has announced significant investments into its network connecting Sicily to mainland Italy, including upgrades to the Janna cable system and the addition of a submarine route connecting Palermo to Genoa. EXA can now offer four diverse routes from Sicily, providing greater choice and resiliency to businesses.

The Janna cable system, which is a hybrid of terrestrial and submarine links, has been upgraded with state-of-the-art DWDM optical technology, allowing EXA to deliver 400 Gbps capacity on this path between Sicily and the Italian peninsula. EXA will also make available a brand new submarine route connecting Palermo and Genoa, thus providing access to Northern Italy’s economic hub.

The Palermo-Genoa route is expected to be ready for service by early Q2 2024. With two further terrestrial links from Sicily, EXA can provide four diverse paths to the Italian mainland and continental Europe providing customers with unparalleled network flexibility and diversification.

Operating what it describes as "the largest owned network across Europe and to North America", EXA wants to position itself as a leading provider of both infrastructure and engineering expertise. Also in the Italian market. Steve Roberts, SVP of Strategic Investments and Product Management, EXA Infrastructure, said: “We recognise the importance of Sicily as one of the major gateways of international traffic into Europe and by upgrading and diversifying our paths off the island, we’re well prepared for current and future bandwidth demand”.