Internet connections in Vietnam will likely be shaky from March 2 to 9, affecting 80 percent of local users, as an undersea cable will be shut down for maintenance.

Since the Asia American Gateway cable provides most international connections for local providers like FPT Telecom, VNPT, and Viettel, their customers will have difficulties in accessing services like Yahoo and Facebook, Thoi bao Kinh te Saigon (Saigon Times) Online reported Friday.

The affected companies said they will try to minimize the problem with back-up land cables, according to the report.

Since 2011 the 20,000 kilometer cable has broken or been shut down for maintenance on several occasions.

On December 20 last year, it broke at a section between the southern beach town of Vung Tau and Hong Kong, leaving Internet connections in Vietnam shaky for two weeks.

With an investment of US$560 million, AAG is the only cable connecting Southeast Asia with the US. It has landing stations in the continental US, Hawaii, Guam, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, and Vietnam.