El Salvador Projects $278 Million Investment in 2026 for Subsea Cable and Pacific Airport

By Uveli Alemán, El Mundo
March 23, 2026

The Public Investment Plan, published by the Ministry of Finance, contemplates an investment of $278.2 million for the construction of the submarine cable and the Pacific Airport.

According to the document, in force as of January 2026, the Autonomous Executive Port Commission (CEPA) has $197 million programmed for the construction and equipment of the Pacific International Airport, in La Unión.

This project is the most costly contemplated by the Salvadoran government for 2026 and is currently in the earthworks stage. According to statements from CEPA in December of last year, at that time a progress of 70% was recorded.

The initiative began in January 2025, when President Nayib Bukele laid the first stone and indicated that the first stage would be delivered in the first half of 2027, with a capacity to handle 2,000 flights annually.

This first phase contemplates an investment of $386.4 million, of which $320 million comes from a CAF loan, $16.4 million from Spain’s Fund for the Internationalization of Business (FIEM), and $50 million from its own resources.

In January 2026, CEPA launched a public expression of interest request for the construction and equipment of the Pacific International Airport.

Submarine cable

For its part, the General Superintendence of Electricity and Telecommunications (SIGET) contemplates an investment of $81.24 million for the construction, equipment, and deployment of the submarine cable system in El Salvador.

For this project, SIGET delegated to Liberty Networks the construction of the country’s first submarine cable, which would be ready in the second half of 2028. This infrastructure will expand bandwidth and improve connectivity resilience.

The submarine cable will have a length of 1,800 kilometers and will connect El Salvador with the main international centers.

In February 2025, the Legislative Assembly approved the incorporation of $85.4 million, coming from a loan from the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF), into the 2025 budget to begin the studies and design of the project.

In the airport sector, CEPA also contemplates $18.8 million for the construction and equipment of the baggage belt area at El Salvador International Airport San Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez.

Likewise, the autonomous institution allocates $11.3 million for the improvement of Ilopango International Airport and $10.2 million for electrical infrastructure at San Óscar Airport.

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