Capacity ceilings have a way of announcing themselves at the worst possible time. Traffic spikes. New clients sign on. Existing infrastructure starts blinking red. That moment has arrived for Bulgaria’s national backbone, and Neterra is responding with a €12 million investment aimed straight at throughput, stability, and scale.
The global connectivity provider is rolling out a full modernization of its Bulgarian optical network using Infinera technology, now part of Nokia. The upgrade targets one clear goal: move far more data, with fewer constraints, and do it in a way that supports international transit across the region.
What Is Actually Being Built
The backbone relies on DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing). DWDM allows many independent light signals, often called lambdas, to travel at the same time across a single fiber pair. Think of it as converting a two-lane road into a multi-lane expressway without laying new asphalt.
Neterra’s existing system tops out at 200 Gigabits per channel. The new deployment raises that ceiling to 800 Gigabits, with headroom up to 1.2 Terabits per channel. That change alone reshapes how much traffic each fiber strand can carry and how long the network can grow before the next rebuild.
Why the Technology Shift Matters
Speed gets the headlines. Control does the real work.
The new network introduces advanced ROADM (Reconfigurable Optical Add-Drop Multiplexer) hardware. These devices allow traffic paths to be adjusted through software instead of manual fiber work. No more mid-route patching. No more site visits just to turn up a service.
This approach shortens delivery times, lowers operational risk, and cuts the chance of human error. For customers, that usually shows up as faster provisioning and fewer surprises during upgrades.
Capacity Pressure Was Already Real
Pavel Marchev, Chief Technology Officer at Neterra, made the situation plain. Portions of the old network had already reached their limit. Contracts were signed that the legacy infrastructure could not support. Growth was no longer theoretical.
The new platform supports higher traffic volumes, steadier performance, and simpler maintenance. That matters for internet users, NetIX members, and enterprise customers moving serious amounts of data across borders.
Routes, Geography, and Timing
The first phase focuses on Western and Southern Bulgaria. Priority routes include Sofia–Ruse and Sofia–Plovdiv–Stara Zagora–Sliven–Kapitan Andreevo. These corridors handle a significant share of domestic and transit traffic.
Activation is expected within three to four months. After that, the project expands east to cover Varna and Bourgas, completing national coverage.
Installation is being handled by Infinera partners, working alongside Neterra’s internal engineering team. The goal is continuity. Services stay live. Migration stays clean.
Neterra’s Broader Position in Global Connectivity
Neterra operates more than 220 points of presence worldwide. It has earned recognition as the Best Central and Eastern European Connectivity Provider for three consecutive years at the Capacity Global Connectivity Awards.
The company also serves as an authorized Starlink reseller and supports nine of the ten largest telecommunications operators globally, along with nearly 1,000 enterprise customers.
Its portfolio spans data centers, internet exchange services, cloud infrastructure, satellite operations, and broadcast platforms. This upgrade feeds directly into that ecosystem.
Big networks do not fail all at once. They fail quietly, link by link, as demand outruns design assumptions. This investment reads like a decision made before that story repeats itself.