Submarine Connectivity: The Manatua Consortium says a technical fault on the Manatua fibre-optic cable about 144 km offshore from Samoa is degrading internet services, mainly affecting Niue and the Cook Islands; diagnostics point to an electrical shunt near Repeater 2 (submerged equipment, not seismic or anchor damage), and a specialist cable repair vessel is being lined up for a permanent fix. Green Shipping Upgrade: bound4blue has installed a 22-metre eSAIL wind propulsion system on the French Polynesia multipurpose vessel Na Hiro E Pae, linking Tahiti with the Austral Islands; the suction-sail setup is expected to cut energy use by around 10% while the ship carries up to 200 passengers and 1,500 tonnes of cargo. Pacific Trade Push: Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) Australia will host a Pacific Showcase at Fine Food Australia 2026 (31 Aug–3 Sep, Melbourne), bringing 15 exporters from eight economies including French Polynesia’s Bora Bora Sea Salt to connect with buyers. Regional Environment & Waste: SPREP’s SWAP2 project (funded by AFD) is supporting cleaner waste management across island territories, including French Polynesia, with progress such as 108 beach surveys and audits of 106,000+ marine-litter items. Ocean Governance Debate: A US company’s proposal to explore deep-sea minerals in high seas waters between Kiribati, the Cook Islands and French Polynesia is open for public comment, prompting PICAN to urge submissions and question unilateral licensing while international rules at the ISA are still being negotiated.