Interchange's ICN-1 is a public-private partnership between Interchange Limited and the government of Vanuatu, completed in January 2014. The $32m, 1259 km long cable was partly debt-funded, with pre-purchase agreements by Vanuatu's government key to finance arrangements. The Vanuatu National Provident Fund is the largest individual shareholder, with a 37.5% stake. Vanuatu Post and the Government of Vanuatu each hold a 6.25% share, and the other 50% is privately held.
After years of low uptake of bandwidth on the cable, Vanuatu's telecommunications regulator found that the operator and other parties had engaged in anti-competitive conduct. After her 2016 ruling, the regulator was suspended in 2017 by Vanuatu's government. Vanuatu's Supreme Court found the government's actions were unlawful.
Lands at:
- Port Vila, Vanuatu
- Suva, Fiji
Additional Resources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interchange_Cable_Network
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602140318/http://interchange.vu/about/
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141518/http://country.eiu.com/article.aspx?articleid=1231448507&Country=Vanuatu&topic=Economy&subtopic=F_7
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141603/https://www.engadget.com/2011/04/14/south-pacifics-vanuatu-grabbing-fiber-internet-connection-side/?guccounter=1
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141646/http://www.vanuatupost.vu/index.php/en/philately/stamps/under-water-cable/1-32
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141736/http://www.pireport.org/articles/2013/11/28/telecommunications-cable-fiji-arrives-vanuatu
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141838/http://www.fintel.com.fj/pages.cfm/company/news/fiji-vanuatu-telecommunications-cable-system.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602141909/http://www.investvanuatu.org/wp/news-n/daily-news/interchange-cs/
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142115/http://dailypost.vu/news/the-cable-ties-that-bind/article_4eb49c94-8636-5282-bfa3-d2cc2befa1e6.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142242/http://dailypost.vu/news/trr-suspended/article_0cf79139-6562-55ef-8fe9-40df543e6dc3.html
- https://web.archive.org/web/20190602142600/http://dailypost.vu/news/pm-must-not-interfere-with-telecoms-regulator/article_d3965cfb-c076-5992-b70b-0ae651b0e434.html