The island is set to be linked to a new undersea fibre optic cable connecting Ireland with the UK and Denmark.

Dublin-based Celtix Connect, on behalf of Aqua Comms, has applied for authorisation to land two branches of the Havhingsten Telecommunication cable at Port Erin and Port Grenaugh.

It will connect to data centres here and in Ireland, the UK and Denmark, offering highly improved internet connection with faster data speeds and increased capacity.

The Havhingsten Telecommunication cable is an open cable system that will span more than 940km.

It will cross the Irish Sea from Loughshinny, north of Dublin, to Squire’s Gate Lane south of Blackpool.

Two branches will land at Port Erin and Port Grenaugh.

The marine cable route will then continue from Seaton Sluice in Northumberland to Houstrup on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in Denmark.

The total length of the cable, including both branches, within Manx territorial waters will be about 75km.

Celtix Connect Ltd, of Pearce Street, Dublin, is applying for a 500m wide corridor along this length.

But the fibre optic cable will occupy only up to 40-49mm width of the seabed following installation.

The Isle of Man currently has three telecommunication cables (E-llan, LANIS and BT) connecting the island to Northern Ireland and UK.

Aqua Comms notes: ’Submarine cable systems do have an end of life, and in order to meet demands for an instant and reliable service, improvements are required to telecommunication networks to make them capable of carrying large amounts of data to meet consumer expectations in the future.’

It said Port Erin was an excellent site for landing a telecommunication cable as it is a sheltered bay allowing the cable to be installed directly from the main cable lay vessel.

Port Grenaugh landing point will offer an alternative route for traffic in case of cable damage on one of the branches.

Environmental impact assessments concluded there will be little impact on wildlife and the seabed.

Aqua Comms was the company behind a $300m project to lay an undersea cable across the Atlantic in 2015, from Long Island to Mayo.

It also owns and operates a shorter Irish Sea crossing from Dublin to Holyhead and worked with Google and Facebook to develop a new high-speed cable between New Jersey, Ireland and Denmark.

Subject to the award of consents, the cable installation is scheduled to take place in Manx waters over 10 to 12 days between December and January and is expected to be operational early next year. The cable is expected to be operational for at least 25 years.