Lazaro Cardenas-Manzanillo Santiago Submarine Cable System (LCMSSCS)

Lazaro Cardenas-Manzanillo Santiago Submarine Cable System (LCMSSCS)

Domestic Submarine Fiber-Optic Cable System — Mexico Pacific Coast 🌊 322 km📅 In service since 2013🔗 3 Landing Points🇲🇽 Mexico only⚡ 0.2 Tbps

Overview

The Lazaro Cardenas-Manzanillo Santiago Submarine Cable System (LCMSSCS) is a 322 km unrepeatered domestic submarine fiber-optic cable system located entirely within Mexico. It connects three important cities on Mexico's Pacific coast: Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas (Michoacán), Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo (Guerrero), and Manzanillo — specifically Bahía de Santiago (Colima).

Built by Huawei Marine Networks (now HMN Technologies Co., Ltd.), the cable entered commercial service in Q4 2013. It is 100% owned by Telmex (Teléfonos de México), a subsidiary of América Móvil — the telecommunications giant controlled by Carlos Slim. The "Santiago" refers to Bahía de Santiago near Manzanillo. Unlike most international submarine cables, LCMSSCS is an entirely domestic system, strengthening coastal connectivity along one of Mexico's most economically important and seismically active coastlines.

Technical Specifications

Parameter	Value
Total System Length	322 km
System Type	Unrepeatered (no powered amplifiers on seabed)
Ready for Service (RFS)	Q4 2013
End of Service (EOS)	2038
Technology	2×100G (lit dark fiber upgrade)
Design Capacity	0.2 Tbps (200 Gbps)
Fiber Pairs	Not publicly disclosed
Wavelengths	2 × 100 Gbps DWDM
Estimated Construction Cost	~USD 8,050,000
Owner	Telmex (100%) — subsidiary of América Móvil
Ownership Model	Private (single owner)
Builder / Supplier	Huawei Marine Networks (now HMN Technologies Co., Ltd.)
Project Type	Upgrade — lit dark fiber (2×100G)
Design Service Life	25 years (until 2038)
Environmental Approval	SEMARNAT (Mexico), December 2007, S.G.P.A./DGIRA.DG.2960/07

Route Segments

The cable passes through two main segments (approximate values):

Segment	Length
Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán → Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Guerrero	~120 km
Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Guerrero → Manzanillo (Playa Santiago), Colima	~202 km

Cable Landing Points

State	City	Landmark / Description
🇲🇽 Michoacán	Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas	Major deep-water Pacific port
🇲🇽 Guerrero	Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo	Major Pacific international tourist resort
🇲🇽 Colima	Manzanillo (Playa Santiago / Bahía de Santiago)	Mexico's busiest Pacific port by cargo volume

Ownership

LCMSSCS is 100% owned and operated by Telmex (Teléfonos de México, S.A.B. de C.V.), a subsidiary of América Móvil — the largest telecommunications company in Latin America, controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim Helú.

The environmental impact assessment was approved by SEMARNAT in December 2007 (document S.G.P.A./DGIRA.DG.2960/07). The cable was built by Huawei Marine Networks — rebranded as HMN Technologies Co., Ltd. in 2020 after Huawei divested its majority stake amid international regulatory pressure.

Telmex (Teléfonos de México) Subsidiary of América Móvil (Carlos Slim) · 100% owner and operator

Strategic Significance

• Provides coastal fiber redundancy along Mexico's Pacific coast — if terrestrial fiber is cut by earthquake, landslide, or hurricane, the submarine cable maintains connectivity.
• Connects three strategically critical locations: Lázaro Cárdenas (key deep-water port for containers and steel), Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo (major international tourist resort), and Manzanillo (Mexico's busiest Pacific port).
• The Pacific coast of Michoacán, Guerrero, and Colima sits atop the Cocos tectonic plate subduction zone — one of the most seismically active regions in the Americas.
• As an unrepeatered system, no active electronic components are on the seabed — lower operational and maintenance costs.
• Part of Telmex's broader Pacific coast cable strategy — later followed by TMX5 (2025, 383 km, Mazatlán to San José del Cabo, USD 25 million).
• Supports economic development across Michoacán, Guerrero, and Colima with reliable high-bandwidth connectivity.

History & Key Events

Although LCMSSCS is a relatively small domestic cable, its history reflects several landmark moments in Mexico's telecommunications infrastructure development and the global submarine cable industry.

• Dec 200719 December 2007 — SEMARNAT issued environmental approval (S.G.P.A./DGIRA.DG.2960/07), covering the coastal zones of Playa Eréndira (Lázaro Cárdenas) and Playa Santiago (Manzanillo).
• Q4 2013Q4 2013 — Cable entered commercial service. Built as a lit dark fiber upgrade: existing dark fiber infrastructure was activated with new 2×100G DWDM equipment rather than deploying an entirely new cable.
• 20202020 — Huawei Marine Networks rebranded as HMN Technologies Co., Ltd. after Huawei divested its majority stake amid international pressure. LCMSSCS remains one of HMN Tech's Latin American reference projects.
• 20252025 — Telmex inaugurated the TMX5 cable (383 km, Mazatlán to San José del Cabo, USD 25 million+), confirming the growing strategic importance of domestic submarine cables in Mexico.

Interesting Facts

• 🇲🇽 LCMSSCS is a purely domestic submarine cable — its entire route lies within Mexican territorial waters, crossing no international borders. Such systems are extremely rare worldwide.
• 💰 With an estimated construction cost of just ~USD 8 million, LCMSSCS is one of the most affordable submarine cable projects in the world — similar-length international cables typically cost 10–20× more.
• 🔌 As an unrepeatered system, the cable has no active electronic components on the seabed — no powered amplifiers. Simpler, cheaper, and easier to maintain than long-haul repeatered cables.
• 🏭 Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas is one of Mexico's most important industrial ports — handling steel imports for AHMSA/TERNIUM and the main Pacific gateway for container cargo from Asia.
• 🚢 Manzanillo is Mexico's single busiest Pacific port by cargo volume, handling millions of containers per year.
• 🌋 The Pacific coast of Michoacán, Guerrero, and Colima sits atop the Cocos tectonic plate subduction zone — one of the most seismically active regions in the Americas.
• 🔄 Built as a 'lit dark fiber' upgrade — Huawei Marine activated pre-existing dark fiber with new 2×100G DWDM equipment, rather than deploying entirely new cable infrastructure.
• 🏢 Telmex's parent, América Móvil, is the largest telecom company in Latin America, operating in 17 countries. Carlos Slim was the world's richest person from 2010 to 2013.
• 🛠️ The builder, Huawei Marine Networks, was renamed HMN Technologies in 2020 amid international regulatory pressures. LCMSSCS remains one of their Latin American reference projects.