Prysmian signs €5.5 billion Molex deal for data center cables

Prysmian signed a long-term agreement worth up to €5.5 billion ($6.3 billion) with Molex, a subsidiary of privately held Koch Inc., for the supply of optical cables used inside data centers, the Italian cable maker announced on Monday.prysmian+1

The 10-year deal includes a €550 million upfront payment and marks Prysmian's largest push yet into the fast-growing market for internal data center connectivity, driven by surging demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure.ilsole24ore+1

A Broader Hyperscaler Strategy

The Molex agreement is part of a wider set of commercial initiatives with hyperscalers and data center infrastructure providers that Prysmian expects to generate more than €10 billion in cumulative incremental revenue by 2035 compared with its 2025 baseline, with annual revenue reaching up to €1.1 billion from 2031 onward, according to the company's press release.reuters+1

"This is a transformative moment for Prysmian's Digital Solutions," CEO Massimo Battaini said in a statement. "Together with our customers, including the important partnership with Molex, we are investing to meet demand."prysmian

Molex CEO Joe Nelligan said the agreement "enables us to better support our mutual customers" and "represents a strategic expansion in the U.S., bringing increased capacity to support the growing demand for data center solutions."prysmian

Doubling U.S. Fiber Capacity

To meet demand, Prysmian will invest €1.25 billion through 2031 to expand optical cable and fiber production in the United States and Europe, more than doubling its fiber capacity in the U.S. The company is one of only three U.S.-based manufacturers of fiber and optical cables. The expansion is expected to create more than 1,000 jobs globally, including roughly 600 in the United States.globalbankingandfinance+1

The deal comes amid a severe tightening in the global optical fiber supply chain. Data center fiber demand grew approximately 76 percent year-on-year in 2025, according to CRU data, and is projected to account for roughly 30 percent of total global fiber demand by 2027. Prysmian, which reported record profits of €1.27 billion for 2025, had already signaled in May that long-term hyperscaler contracts were near completion.reuters+2