Under the oceans, the strategic infrastructure behind international communications
We tend to think of the internet as something that exists in the cloud, with satellites carrying data around the world. But 99% of intercontinental telephone communications and data transfers actually travel through cables laid across the ocean floor. It's an extraordinary physical network that we rarely see or think about, yet rely on every day.
At Orange, we know this world well. Our history in submarine cables dates back to 1864, when France launched its first cable-laying ship, the Ampère. Today, Orange Marine and its Italian sister company, Elettra Tlc, work across the entire process, from project design and seabed surveys to cable laying, shore landings, and maintenance. We also operate a 450,000 km submarine fiber network. That’s enough to circle the Earth several times.
300,300 km of submarine fiber optic cables
laid worldwide by Orange Marine and Elettra Tlc.
The network can’t stand still. It needs to handle growing digital demand and open up new routes between continents. It also needs to become more secure and resilient, so services can keep running when a cable is damaged, while reducing the environmental footprint of operations.
That’s why we’re developing new routes and modernizing our fleet.
But how do you install infrastructure stretching thousands of kilometers across the ocean floor? It all starts with choosing the right route.
How Orange plans routes and lays submarine cables
Before a ship even leaves port, there’s a route to work out. The shape and composition of the seabed, seismic activity, environmentally sensitive areas, and existing cables all need to be considered. The goal is to find the safest path while limiting environmental impact.
Next comes the seabed survey. On a specialized vessel such as Elettra’s Urbano Monti, teams map the route in detail and refine the plan. Once the cable has been manufactured, it’s loaded aboard a cable-laying ship and installation begins. Depending on local conditions and risks, the cable is either laid on the seabed or buried beneath it for extra protection.
Then it needs to make landfall, connecting the submarine cable to networks on shore. ViaTunisia, the section of the Medusa cable linking Marseille with Bizerte in Tunisia, has recently completed that journey. From marine surveys and testing through loading, installation, landings, and connections, Orange and Orange Marine teams have supported every stage ahead of its planned entry into service in 2026.
Even a few meters from the beach, precision matters. In Marseille, ViaTunisia runs beneath the coastline through a directional bore, helping protect seagrass meadows and Calanques National Park. It then connects to Orange’s infrastructure in the city. Underwater, the best route isn’t necessarily the shortest one.
Cable ships and underwater vehicles: maintaining networks at depths of up to 3,000 meters
Once a cable is laid, the work doesn’t end. It needs maintenance and, if it’s damaged, repairs. Orange Marine and Elettra Tlc carry out around 50 repair operations a year. Their ships have completed more than 1,200 repairs in total, some at depths greater than 6,000 meters.
To work where people can’t, teams use remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs, controlled from a ship above. And Orange Marine doesn’t just operate these underwater robots. We design and build them ourselves in France.
The latest result of that expertise is Alpha, a tracked ROV that can operate at depths of up to 3,000 meters. It can locate and inspect cables, grab and cut them, and bury or rebury them as deep as 3 meters below the seabed.
That expertise is also attracting interest beyond Orange’s own fleet. In September 2026, British cable ship operator Global Marine selected an Alpha-series ROV designed and built by our teams in Provence for its future maintenance ship. It’s the third overseas operator to choose an Alpha ROV, reflecting Orange Marine’s growing international reputation.
This strategic investment in our cable ship fleet will be essential to ensuring the resilience and security of the global internet.
We’re also modernizing our fleet to strengthen our response capabilities. Following the Sophie Germain, which entered service in 2023, two new sister ships will join the fleet in 2028 and 2029. With better performance and lower emissions, they’ll help us maintain and protect digital infrastructure across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
The new ships will be named after scientists with remarkable careers. Orange employees will help choose the next name. Elettra Tlc has also asked its teams to help name its future vessel, with the aim of reflecting the fleet’s Italian identity. Both names are expected to be announced together.
New routes for a more resilient Internet
Why lay more cables when hundreds of thousands of kilometers already cross the oceans? For one thing, digital demand keeps growing. But there’s another reason: the more alternative routes a network has, the better it can keep working if a cable fails or an incident disrupts one route. That’s what resilience means in practice.
Orange is putting that approach into action through several major projects. Together with Equitix and MDM, we’re creating a joint venture to develop PISCES, a new submarine cable spanning approximately 3,125 km that will connect Ireland, France, Spain, and Portugal directly. It aims to strengthen Europe’s digital resilience and sovereignty while meeting growing connectivity needs, particularly those driven by AI. Orange Marine is scheduled to lay the cable in 2028.
Other projects follow the same thinking in different parts of the world. ViaAfrica will create a new route between Europe and Africa along the Atlantic coast. In the Indian Ocean, ReuNION will connect Réunion Island to South Africa via a more direct route.
Different projects in different regions, but the same aim: increase network capacity, offer more routes, and make connections more secure and resilient for the places that depend on them.
Reducing the environmental footprint of subsea operations
Expanding submarine networks also means finding ways to limit their impact. As we’ve seen, that starts with route planning. It continues at sea, where Orange Marine’s new ships are designed to cut CO₂ emissions by up to 20% compared with today’s vessels. Hybrid propulsion, shore power, and lower transit speeds all help reduce their footprint.
3,000 km of cables recovered and recycled
Once the cables are decommissioned, materials including copper, other metals, and polyethylene are recycled.
There’s a catch, though: removing an old cable isn’t always the most environmentally responsible option. If coral has colonized it or it has become part of a seagrass habitat, lifting it could disturb the ecosystem that has formed around it. In those cases, leaving it in place is better.
From new routes and lower-emission ships to deep-sea robots and cable recycling, an extraordinary amount of infrastructure sits behind our everyday online activities, almost entirely out of sight. Next time a message or video call travels halfway around the world in an instant, remember: beneath the surface, a very real network is hard at work.
Key takeaways
- Submarine cables are the invisible backbone of the internet, carrying 99% of intercontinental telephone communications and data transfers.
- Orange works throughout a cable’s lifecycle, from planning and laying to maintenance, and operates a 450,000 km submarine fiber network worldwide.
- New routes, next-generation ships, and underwater robots help increase capacity and strengthen network resilience and security.
- Reducing environmental impact matters at every stage, from route planning and ship design to recycling decommissioned cables.
