Nokia to power Medusa submarine cable linking Morocco and Europe
Nokia has announced its contract to supply cutting-edge technology for the Medusa submarine cable, a landmark project aimed at enhancing digital connectivity between Europe and North Africa. The Finnish telecommunications giant will deploy its 1830 GX platform and ICE7 coherent optics, enabling efficient, high-speed data transmission with low latency and energy consumption.
Stretching 8,700 kilometers across the Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Red Seas, the Medusa system will deliver a total capacity of 480 terabits per second, with each of its 24 fiber pairs supporting 20 terabits per second. The €342 million project, co-funded by the European Union, will link Cyprus, Greece, France, Portugal, Italy, and Spain to Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. The initiative aims to close the region's connectivity gap, facilitating access to advanced technologies like 5G and AI.
A high-speed digital corridor
The Medusa cable will connect Morocco to Southern Europe through Nador and Marseille, with additional links in Tetouan. Designed as an open-access system, it will enable regional telecom operators to meet growing bandwidth demands and support cloud infrastructure and 5G deployment.
Moroccan telecom operators Inwi and Orange Morocco have partnered with Medusa to enhance trans-Mediterranean connectivity. Orange has invested in submarine cable hosting infrastructure in Nador, while Inwi focuses on providing robust fiber optic links.
The project's technical partner, Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN), a Nokia subsidiary, began construction in 2022. The work included seabed inspection, feasibility studies, and route preparation, culminating in the cable's deployment in 2025.
Economic and technological impact
Studies suggest that increasing submarine cable capacity can reduce mobile broadband costs by up to 50%, encouraging wider adoption of digital services. The Medusa system is also expected to improve network redundancy in North Africa, where outages caused by cable failures are common.
As the Medusa project progresses, Morocco is set to build the infrastructure needed to integrate this transformative system, which promises to revolutionize digital connectivity across the Mediterranean.
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