Grid Telecom, a 100% subsidiary of IPTO, is expanding its plans for the development of international telecommunications networks with the aim of making Crete a regional digital hub.
By investing in modern national and international infrastructure, Grid Telecom aims to transform Crete into a strategic data traffic axis in the Eastern Mediterranean.
In this context, the submarine fiber optic cable systems, Minoas East-West and Apollo East-West, are being utilized, which interconnect the island with the mainland, through four different routes and 96 pairs of fiber optics.
The Minoas East and Minoas West cables with a capacity of up to 35 Tb/s per fiber pair connect Chania to the Peloponnese, providing an alternative low-latency data transmission route to Milan and other important destinations in Western Europe. Correspondingly, the Apollo East and Apollo West cables, with a capacity of up to 11.5 Tb/s per fiber pair, were put into commercial operation in May 2025 and directly connect the Heraklion region to Attica, without intermediate cable stations, offering a direct alternative protected route to the Balkans and Eastern Europe.
In addition, Grid Telecom is a co-owner of the 2Africa submarine cable system, which ends in Crete. This is the world’s largest submarine fiber optic cable, with a total length of 45,000 km, which landed in Crete in February 2025, interconnecting 33 countries through 46 cable stations in Europe, Africa and Asia and supporting a capacity of at least 18 Tb/s per fiber pair to the largest Greek island and other important parts of the system in the Mediterranean.
Through strategic partnerships with Telecom Egypt and other telecommunications operators, Grid Telecom is preparing to offer international cable capacity east to the Middle East and west to Europe, directly interconnecting Crete with Port Said, Genoa, Marseille and other European destinations.
Grid Telecom is establishing its presence in the Greek market as the leading neutral provider of wholesale telecommunications services, increasing the reach of its optical network in Crete while upgrading its nationwide DWDM network.
