October 10,2025
The first segment of the ambitious Medusa subsea cable system has been successfully landed in Marseille, France, marking a significant initial milestone for the project. Orange, acting as the landing party for this phase, confirmed the cable’s arrival at the company’s landing station in the Plage des Catalans on December 14, 2023. This crucial event initiates the construction of a system designed to be the longest submarine cable in the Mediterranean Sea, ultimately connecting the region with new levels of digital capacity and resilience.
The Medusa cable is a massive undertaking that will eventually span approximately 8,700 kilometers. Its comprehensive route is planned to link numerous countries across the Mediterranean and beyond, including Morocco, Portugal, Spain, France, Algeria, Tunisia, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt. This extensive geographical reach underscores the project's strategic importance in enhancing connectivity and supporting the growing data demands between North Africa and Southern Europe. The system is being developed by a consortium and is designed with a substantial capacity of 20 terabits per second per fiber pair, utilizing state-of-the-art optical technology.
The landing in Marseille represents the first physical step in realizing this vision. Orange’s role involved managing the complex marine operations to bring the cable ashore safely. The next major phase of the project will see the cable extended from Marseille to Barcelona, with further landings scheduled in Portugal, Morocco, and Algeria. The entire Medusa system is projected to be fully operational and ready for service by the end of 2025, promising to significantly boost the region's telecommunications infrastructure and provide a new, robust data highway for decades to come.
SOURCE ComputerWeekly
