West African Submarine Internet Cables Now Repaired

The West Africa Cable System (Wacs), which suffered a severance along with three other submarine internet cables in mid-March, is anticipated to be fully repaired by today, Tuesday, 30 April 2024.

The incident, suspected to be a subsea seismic event near Ivory Coast on 14 March, disrupted internet connectivity across the region, extending as far south as South Africa. Among the affected cables were Sat-3, Ace, and MainOne.

Despite the disruption, much of the internet traffic was swiftly rerouted through alternative cables. Notably, Google’s Equiano system, recently launched between Cape Town and Europe, and the Sacs cable, facilitating traffic from Angola to Latin America and the US, played crucial roles in maintaining connectivity.

Also Read: First Under Sea Internet Cable Repair Ship Arrives at SAT-3 Site in West Africa

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Repair efforts for Wacs have been underway, albeit facing challenges due to the repair ships having to sail from distant locations. A spokesperson for Openserve, Telkom’s wholesale networks subsidiary and an investor in Sat-3 and Wacs, indicated that repairs are scheduled for completion on Tuesday, with internet traffic expected to resume soon after.

The older Sat-3 cable, with lower capacity, was successfully repaired and restored on 7 April, as confirmed by Openserve.

Repairing submarine cables involves intricate processes, including lifting the cables from the ocean floor, conducting repairs onboard repair ships, and carefully lowering the cables back into place. Seismic events, common along Africa’s west coast, have historically contributed to cable faults, with previous incidents occurring in the deep Congo Canyon off the coast of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The status of repairs for the MainOne and Ace cables remains uncertain. However, it’s noted that the CS Sovereign, the vessel dispatched for Wacs repair, is also tasked with repairing the Ace system, according to a statement by MTN Group’s Bayobab on 15 March. Updates on Ace cable repair progress are pending.

Additionally, the CS Sovereign has reportedly been assigned to the MainOne cable repair. Tracking data indicates the UK-registered vessel’s presence offshore near Ivory Coast at the time of reporting.