New Subsea Cable ‘Medusa’ Lands in Marseille, Boosting Europe-Africa Connectivity

A new high-capacity submarine cable system, dubbed Medusa, began deployment yesterday with a key landing in Marseille, France, promising to significantly enhance internet connectivity between Southern Europe, North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

The project, led by Barcelona-based telecom infrastructure company AFR-IX Telecom, is an 8,700-kilometer digital interconnection designed to create a new data corridor. The first section was brought ashore by project partner Orange Group on October 8th. “By bringing Medusa to Marseille, one of Europe’s leading digital hubs, we are laying the foundation for a project that will transform communications between Europe and Africa,” said Norman Albi, CEO of AFR-IX Telecom and Medusa. This increased bandwidth is crucial for supporting the growing digital economies in both regions.

With a total capacity of 480 terabits per second – 20 terabits per second per fiber pair – Medusa represents a substantial investment in regional infrastructure, backed by €342 million, including funding from the European Union. The cable will initially connect major European nations like Cyprus, Greece, France, Portugal, Italy, and Spain with North African countries including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. Further expansion is already underway, with Gabon signing on in March 2025 for a cable landing planned for 2028, and a feasibility study initiated with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency to potentially connect 22 additional African countries. You can learn more about the importance of subsea cables at Submarine Cable Systems.

Analysts predict that Medusa will help reduce the high cost of internet access across Africa, where fewer than 40 percent of the population currently have regular access. AFR-IX secured an additional €14.3 million from the European Commission earlier this year to extend the system toward West Africa, and officials anticipate the system will be fully operational in 2026.