• Orange Maroc inaugurated Morocco’s first open-access cable landing station in Nador to host the Medusa subsea cable.
• The Medusa cable spans more than 8,700 kilometers and links 19 landing points between Europe and North Africa.
• Orange Maroc plans more than 100 billion dirhams ($10.9 billion) in infrastructure investments over 25 years.

Orange Maroc announced on Tuesday, December 16, the inauguration in Nador of Morocco’s first open-access cable landing station. The strategic infrastructure will host the Medusa subsea cable. The cable extends over more than 8,700 kilometers and connects 19 landing points between Europe and North Africa. The system will strengthen Morocco’s international connectivity and support its ambition to become a regional digital hub.

“This is an infrastructure that Orange Maroc teams designed and delivered through local expertise, with active participation from Orange Group experts. It will allow Morocco to strengthen its digital sovereignty and support the digital development of the Moroccan economy,” said Mohamed Benali, Chief Technology & Information Officer of Orange Maroc.

The Medusa project targets data transmission capacity of up to 20 terabits per second per fiber pair through next-generation optical fiber technology. The cable connects Nador directly to Marseille and to other strategic points in the Mediterranean. This configuration will strengthen the resilience of digital exchanges between North Africa and Europe while diversifying connectivity routes. The landing station built by Orange Maroc covers 3,500 square meters and includes IT capacity designed to host advanced digital services.

A project aligned with a national and regional strategy

These developments align with Orange Maroc’s long-term strategy. The company plans more than 100 billion dirhams in investments over 25 years to develop national digital infrastructure. The strategy supports 5G deployment, artificial intelligence solutions, and digital sovereignty initiatives through the Orange Tech data center and cloud partnerships.

At a broader level, these initiatives also align with Morocco’s digital transformation ambitions. The country aims to build a high-performance, sustainable, and competitive digital ecosystem. This ecosystem will support national economic growth while integrating social and environmental commitments, including a target of 100% renewable energy use by 2040.

Economic and technological impacts

From an economic perspective, the arrival of the Medusa cable could reshape Morocco’s digital landscape. Improved international connectivity will attract new technology investments. The infrastructure will support the expansion of digital services and reduce bandwidth costs for businesses and users. The cable will also provide strategic redundancy amid rising data flows and growing demand driven by 5G, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence.

This article was initially published in French by Samira Njoya

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum