What each country and landing point keeps if Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1) goes down. A calculation from our cable and landing-point database, not a forecast.
Kärdla, Estonia: no other cable lands within 50 km.
On an island this means losing the submarine link; on the mainland traffic can still go over land.
Our alerts on this cable in the last 180 days: 2, last on 30 Jul 2026. Events feed →
Counted: other international cables landing in the same country (domestic cables between points of one country are not a way out), other cables at landing points within 50 km, and whether the country has land links. Not counted: cable capacity, operator contracts and satellite. Use as a first look at dependence, not as a statement of what would happen.
Live Performance
406
measurements
14
probes
225
days monitored
50.8
ms avg RTT
2
anomalies
Monitored from 2026-03-06 through 2026-10-18 - live ICMP round-trip time measurements via our monitoring probes. All values below are recomputed daily from raw probe data.
Measurement sources
Probe
Location
Samples
Avg
Min-Max
Last seen
#751
control probe
210
47.7 ms
8.6-267.6
2026-05-24
#705
control probe
176
47.8 ms
7.9-161.2
2026-10-18
own probe
Minsk BY
4
25.5 ms
19.8-41.8
2026-09-03
#6427 own probe
Sydney AU
3
270.6 ms
263.7-279.4
2026-09-03
own probe
Almaty KZ
2
71.4 ms
70.9-71.9
2026-07-30
own probe
Tbilisi GE
2
81.7 ms
79.0-84.4
2026-07-30
own probe
Saint Petersburg RU
2
22.2 ms
16.2-28.3
2026-09-03
#40
control probe
1
12.3 ms
12.3-12.3
2026-04-10
#6410 own probe
Sao Paulo BR
1
217.1 ms
217.1-217.1
2026-07-30
#6487
control probe
1
279.3 ms
279.3-279.3
2026-07-30
#7062 own probe
Cape Town ZA
1
261.7 ms
261.7-261.7
2026-07-30
own probe
Jerusalem IL
1
81.7 ms
81.7-81.7
2026-05-12
own probe
Sevastopol UA
1
47.7 ms
47.7-47.7
2026-05-12
own probe
Moscow RU
1
23.0 ms
23.0-23.0
2026-05-12
About the Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1) Cable System
Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1): Connecting the Baltic Sea
The Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1) submarine cable is a 240 km fiber-optic system linking Sweden and Estonia across the Baltic Sea. Operational since 1995, it connects the landing points of Stavsnas in Sweden with Kärdla and Tallinn in Estonia. Owned by Arelion, GN Great Nordic, and Telia Eesti, the cable is part of the Baltic Sea's dense telecommunications network. While its design capacity, fiber count, and supplier details are not publicly disclosed, the cable remains an active route for data transmission between the two countries.
What stands out about EE-S 1 is its longevity and the lack of publicly available technical specifications. Despite being in service for nearly three decades, details such as its fiber pairs and transmission technology remain undisclosed, which is unusual for cables of this age. Additionally, while GeoCables records its ready-for-service year as 1995, there is no corroborating information from other industry sources to suggest a different timeline, leaving the date uncontested but potentially under-scrutinized.
Quick facts
Cable name
Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1)
Length
240 km
Ready for service
1995 (GeoCables database value)
Owners
Arelion, GN Great Nordic, Telia Eesti
Status
In service
Design capacity
Not disclosed
Fiber pairs
Not disclosed
Supplier
Not disclosed
Technology
Not disclosed
Landing points
Kärdla (Estonia); Stavsnas (Sweden); Tallinn (Estonia)
The Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1) cable was constructed to enhance connectivity between Sweden and Estonia, facilitating data exchange and supporting telecommunications in the Baltic region. Its establishment in 1995 coincided with Estonia's growing integration into European digital networks following its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. While the cable's exact traffic composition is not disclosed, it likely supports internet, voice, and data services for both residential and commercial users in the region.
History: what can be established
GeoCables records the cable's ready-for-service year as 1995, and no conflicting dates are noted in publicly available industry sources. The ownership structure includes Arelion, GN Great Nordic, and Telia Eesti, the latter being the successor to Eesti Telekom, EMT, and Elion. The cable's operational status remains active, reflecting its role in regional connectivity despite its age.
Capacity and technology
Public sources do not disclose the design capacity, fiber pairs, supplier, or transmission technology of EE-S 1. Without operator documentation, attributing these specifications would be speculative. Given its 1995 launch, the cable likely underwent upgrades to remain competitive in terms of capacity and technology, but specifics are unavailable.
Latency: the physics
The theoretical one-way light propagation latency over the 240 km wet segment is approximately 1.2 ms, with a round-trip time (RTT) floor of 2.4 ms. However, real-world latency is higher due to additional factors like land tails, terminal equipment, and routing complexities. Live measurements from remote probes show significantly higher RTTs, such as 7.9 ms for Tallinn to Stavsnas and 12.3 ms for Stavsnas to Tallinn. These values reflect the full internet path rather than the cable itself, including terrestrial network segments and routing inefficiencies.
Redundancy: what happens if it breaks
Should EE-S 1 experience a disruption, redundancy is available through other cables in the region. Stavsnas hosts the BCS North - Phase 1 cable, while Tallinn connects to multiple alternatives, including Baltic Sea Submarine Cable, E-FINEST, Finland-Estonia 2 (EESF-2), Finland Estonia Connection 1 (FEC-1), Finland Estonia Connection 2 (FEC-2), and Mjolner East. Standard industry practices for submarine cable repair, such as deploying specialized ships to locate and fix faults, would apply to EE-S 1.
Bottom line
Sweden-Estonia (EE-S 1) is a 240 km submarine cable linking Sweden and Estonia, operational since 1995.
Owned by Arelion, GN Great Nordic, and Telia Eesti, it connects Stavsnas, Kärdla, and Tallinn.
Technical specifications like design capacity, fiber pairs, and supplier are not publicly disclosed.
Theoretical latency over the wet segment is ≈ 2.4 ms RTT, but live measurements show higher values due to routing.
Redundancy is provided by multiple cables in the Baltic Sea corridor.