Baylink Networks Inc. | Submarine Fibre Optic Telecommunication Cables

Project status

Permit amendment under review

In February 2024, Baylink Networks Inc. submitted a request to amend the expiry date of the permit PER No. 20-208. The request is to extend the permit validity until August 2024  located in Burrard Inlet, British Columbia on federal lands and waters managed by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

As part of the Project and Environmental Review  for the proposed project under the Impact Assessment Act, the proposed project was posted on the Canadian Impact Assessment Registry with an opportunity for public comment between March 15, 2024 and April 13, 2024. The port authority will conduct formal consultation activities with stakeholders and Indigenous groups. 

About the proposed amendment:

Strathcona Connected Coast Network Corporation is requesting an extension to the approved project permit PER No. 20-208, which has an expiry date of March 31, 2024. Additional approves from other regulatory authority’s are required, therefore, more time is required to undertake the Project.

Permit issued

On March 31, 2022, a project permit was issued to Baylink Networks Inc. (the Applicant), on behalf of Strathcona Connected Coast Network Corporation, to install two submarine fibre optic cables in Burrard Inlet, in Vancouver, British Columbia on federal waters managed by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

The project was approved subject to 37 permit conditions Baylink Networks Inc. must meet to ensure the project does not result in significant adverse environmental effects. Please see the Impact Assessment Act Registry for the Notice of Intent and Notice of Decision.

The cables are proposed to be installed separately, with the first cable planned for installation during Spring 2022 and the second cable planned for installation in late-2022, or early-2023. Completion is anticipated for the end of Spring 2023.

The Applicant proposes to install two submarine fibre optic cables in Burrard Inlet with a shore landing location at the Vancouver Convention Centre West that would allow for connection to a major internet exchange point at 1050 West Pender Street, Vancouver. The proposal is part of the “Connected Coast” project, which aims to bring high-speed communications infrastructure to remote coastal communities throughout BC. The cables would travel from the shore landing location, along the seabed in Burrard Inlet, through First Narrows and out towards Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. The approximate lengths of the cables intended to be laid within federal lands and waters managed by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority are 4,322 metres and 4,379 metres; this includes the majority of the proposed cable route through Burrard Inlet up to approximately 625 metres west of the Lions Gate Bridge. The proposed shore landing location at the Vancouver Convention Centre West is within the City of Vancouver’s jurisdiction. The cables would also travel through the port authority’s navigational jurisdiction, which includes all of Burrard Inlet, and extends up until Point Atkinson at Lighthouse Park.

The cables measure approximately 13.5 millimetres by 6.3 millimetres, and would be installed by a cable-laying vessel, which would lay the cables directly onto the seabed, spaced approximately 50 metres apart. The cables would be armoured with an iron split pipe through First Narrows, and at the shore landing location, for additional protection. The cables are proposed to be installed separately, with the first cable planned for installation during Spring 2022 and the second cable planned for installation in late 2022/early 2023. Cable installation from the shore landing location to the First Narrows is anticipated to take approximately five hours per cable. Cable installation from First Narrows through the remainder of the port authority’s navigational jurisdiction is anticipated to take an additional three hours per cable. Works may take place outside of regular construction hours in order to reduce impacts to shipping; the schedule will be determined closer to construction.

Contact information

For questions regarding the Project and Environmental Review of the proposed project, or to get in touch with our team, please contact us by email or phone at 604.665.9047.

Please note, when receiving public feedback as part of the PER process, the port authority may collect your personal information, i.e., your name, contact information and personal views and opinions, to inform the PER process for a proposed project. Your personal information may be disclosed to third parties, such as our tenants, in order for them to respond directly to you or help inform our response.  You are entitled to submit a complaint to the Privacy Commissioner office here.