Prysmian signs €5.5 billion optical cable deal with Koch-owned Molex for data centre push

The agreement

Prysmian has signed a long-term agreement worth up to €5.5 billion ($6.3-6.4 billion) with Molex, the electronics firm owned by the private US conglomerate Koch Inc. The deal covers the supply of optical cables for use inside data centres and has a maximum duration of 10 years. It includes an upfront payment of €550 million from Molex to Prysmian.

The agreement is part of a set of initiatives with big tech firms and data-center operators.

Broader commercial push

The Molex contract sits inside a wider plan of new agreements and commercial initiatives with hyperscalers and data-centre infrastructure operators. Prysmian expects this broader set of deals to generate more than €10 billion in additional cumulative revenue by 2035, measured against a 2025 baseline. From 2031 onward, the company forecasts up to €1.1 billion in incremental annual revenue from these activities.

Production ramp-up

To support the growth, Prysmian will significantly increase its production capacity for fibre and optical cables. The company plans to more than double its fibre capacity in the United States relative to current volumes. The new agreements draw on Prysmian's existing strengths in the data-centre sector, spanning both digital connectivity and power connections, and allow the group to place its fibre and cables into the so-called "inside" space of data centres.

Market context

The deal taps into a surge in investment in artificial-intelligence infrastructure, which is driving rapid expansion of the data-centre market. Prysmian, headquartered in Milan, is positioning itself as a key supplier for the physical layer of that build-out, moving beyond its traditional cable markets into the high-density optical interconnects required inside modern server farms.