Submarine cable cut causes network chaos in West Africa, repairs to last 5 weeks

A significant disruption in undersea submarine cables has plunged West Africa into a state of digital disarray, with repair estimates stretching up to five weeks, according to MainOne, a prominent digital infrastructure service provider in the region.

MainOne revealed on Friday that the repair process for its undersea submarine cables might necessitate one to two weeks, with an additional 2-3 weeks expected for transit time.

The disruption, which occurred on Thursday, impacted subsea cable providers across the continent, causing widespread internet traffic disruptions, particularly affecting the services of banks and telecommunications companies in Nigeria.

Preliminary investigations conducted by MainOne attributed the network outage to an external incident resulting in a cut on its submarine cable system, located in the Atlantic Ocean offshore Cote D’Ivoire, along the West African coast.

“The fault occurred due to an external incident that resulted in a cut on its submarine cable system, in the Atlantic Ocean offshore Cote D’Ivoire, along the coast of West Africa”. “We have a maintenance agreement with Atlantic Cable Maintenance and Repair Agreement (ACMA) to provide repair services for the submarine cable,” the company said.

The company emphasized its maintenance agreement with the Atlantic Cable Maintenance and Repair Agreement (ACMA) for repair services.

The repair process involves several steps, including identifying and assigning a vessel, retrieving necessary spares, conducting repair work at the fault location, splicing the affected section of the submarine cable, and subsequent inspection and testing for defects.

“First identify and assign a vessel, the vessel has to retrieve the necessary spares required for repair, and then sail to the fault location to conduct the repair work.

“Next, in order to complete the repair, the affected section of the submarine cable will have to be pulled from the seabed onto the ship where it will be spliced by skilled technicians.”

MainOne outlined a timeline of 1-2 weeks for repairs, coupled with 2-3 weeks of transit time for the vessel to mobilize spares from Europe to West Africa.

Meanwhile, MTN Group announced its collaboration with Bayobab, a digital connectivity solutions company, to synchronize repair efforts on the damaged underwater communication cables in West Africa.

The statement confirmed the damage to four subsea cables: WACS, ACE, SAT3, and MainOne.

MTN detailed its strategy, focusing on rerouting traffic, enabling more circuits, and initiating collaborative repair efforts for ACE and WACS by mobilizing a cable ship.

“As confirmed by their consortium partners, on March 14, 2024 four subsea cables were cut. They are WACS, ACE, SAT3 and MainOne,” MTN said.

“ACE and WACS have jointly initiated the repair process by mobilising a cable ship for a collaborative repair effort. While investigation and repair efforts are underway, Bayobab’s strategy focuses on successfully rerouting traffic, leveraging our extensive network, and collaborating with industry partners,” the telco said

The telecom giant emphasized its network resiliency, swiftly activating new cables to facilitate faster rerouting and bolstering network resilience. Progress has been made in restoring service in some affected regions, with a commitment to achieving full recovery swiftly.

Both MainOne and MTN pledged to provide incremental updates on repair progress and restoration efforts as information becomes available, underscoring their dedication to resolving the network disruption and minimizing its impact on businesses and consumers across West Africa.