In a milestone transaction to fund a new undersea fiber optic cable between the US and Brazil, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP has advised Seaborn Networks in its financing to build the first direct submarine cable connection between New York and São Paulo.
Global private markets investment manager Partners Group will provide equity financing for the cable project, known as Seabras-1, expected to cost approximately $500 million.
Milbank Corporate partner John Franchini and Communications partner Glenn Gerstell led the team representing Massachusetts-based Seaborn, with assistance from associates Rachel Fink and Oliver Irwin.
Seabras-1, which Seaborn and Partners Group envisage as the first in a series of independent, carrier-neutral alternative networks providing broadband capacity between nations, has already sold substantial capacity to major technology providers. That includes Microsoft, which has been a foundational customer since last fall.
Existing US-Brazil subsea cables carry approximately 65% of all internet, data, and voice traffic between Latin America and the rest of the world. Seabras-1 will use next-generation coherent technology to deliver high-capacity telecommunications for one of the fastest-growing transoceanic routes in the world, offering point-to-point bandwidth and connectivity services between New York and São Paulo, Brazil’s most populous city.
Milbank’s Mr. Franchini said, “We’re excited to participate with Seaborn in this first of its kind transaction, which is a major step in enhancing telecommunications infrastructure not only within Brazil and neighboring countries in South America, but between Brazil and the rest of the world. We are pleased to see Seaborn partner with the sophisticated private infrastructure team at Partners Group.”
Choate Hall & Stewart LLP also provided corporate advice to Seaborn and Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP provided regulatory advice to Seaborn.
About Milbank
Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is a leading international law firm providing innovative legal solutions to clients throughout the world for more than 150 years. Milbank is headquartered in New York and has offices in Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Munich, São Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, DC.
The firm’s lawyers provide a full range of legal services to the world’s leading commercial, financial and industrial enterprises, as well as to institutions, individuals and governments. Milbank’s lawyers meet the needs of its clients by offering a highly integrated and collaborative range of services across key practice groups throughout its global network. Milbank’s integrated practice is underpinned by its attorneys’ acknowledged technical excellence, sectorial expertise and a strong tradition of innovation and client service.
