CAM Ring

Overview

CAM Ring is a domestic submarine cable system serving Portugal, connecting three Portuguese island and mainland locations across an approximate total length of 1,120 kilometres. The cable operates entirely within Portuguese territory, linking the Atlantic island groups of Madeira and the Azores with one another and with associated island dependencies. It is owned and operated by Altice Portugal.

Route and Landings

All three landing points on the CAM Ring system are located in Portugal. The cable touches Funchal, on the island of Madeira; Porto Santo, on the island of Porto Santo in the Madeira archipelago; and Ponta Delgada, on the island of São Miguel in the Azores. These three landings form the ring topology reflected in the cable's name.

Ownership and Operators

CAM Ring is solely owned by Altice Portugal, the Portuguese telecommunications operator and subsidiary of the Altice Group. As a single-owner system, it provides Altice Portugal with direct infrastructure control across the Atlantic island corridors it serves.

Status and Timeline

CAM Ring entered service in 2003 and has been operational for approximately 23 years. It carries an in-service status, continuing to provide connectivity between its three landing points.

Regional Context

Portugal is home to a broad range of submarine cable infrastructure, with ten cables landing across nine landing points. Most cables landing in Portugal serve long-haul intercontinental corridors — the country's average cable length across those systems is approximately 7,773 kilometres. At 1,120 kilometres, CAM Ring sits at the shorter end of that spectrum, reflecting its focused domestic role connecting the Madeira and Azores archipelagos rather than spanning ocean basins.

The cables sharing Portuguese landing points include long-haul systems such as 2Africa, Africa Coast to Europe (ACE), Equiano, Europe India Gateway (EIG), Medusa Submarine Cable System, and Sol, all of which extend far beyond Portuguese waters. CAM Ring is a distinctly shorter and more regionally contained system by comparison, dedicated to intra-Portuguese island connectivity rather than international traffic.

Strategic Role

By linking Funchal, Porto Santo, and Ponta Delgada within a ring architecture, CAM Ring provides direct submarine cable connectivity between two geographically separated Portuguese Atlantic archipelagos. The ring topology supports resilience across the three landing points, ensuring that a break in one segment does not isolate a node entirely. For the communities and infrastructure in Madeira and the Azores, this system represents a dedicated domestic cable link under Portuguese ownership.