Orange Cameroon and the State sign agreement to operate the ACE submarine cable

The subsidiary of the french telecoms in Cameroon, Orange and the Government of Cameroon signed on June 9, 2015 in Yaoundé, an agreement relating to the operation of the submarine optic fiber cable, African Coast to Europe (ACE).

Although the details of the convention was not divulged, we know however that the law in force in Cameroon attributed the exclusivity of the optical fiber to Camtel telecoms, the public operator.

With this legal provision criticized by competitors, all other operators like MTN International brought the WACS to its Cameroon subsidiary, which has built its point of siltation in Limbe, in the Southwest. They are obliged to resell these infrastructures to the State.

After an audit of costs, such infrastructure have been surrendered to Camtel, the incumbent telecom operator in the country.

14.000 Km Long, ACE, which stretches from Europe to the West African coast has been deployed by a consortium of investors in which Orange group is found. The arrival of this 3rd submarine optic fiber cable to which Cameroon is connecting after the SAT3 and WACS, said Elisabeth Marmar Bandang, the DG of Orange Cameroon, will allow them to "manage the increase in the use of data and to improve connectivity in the country.

On April 21, 2015, the Cameroonian Government launched a call for tender in order to recruit a consortium for the realization of detailed technical studies of the construction project of the ACE submarine cable landing point in the town of Kribi, South region.

This infrastructure will be built by 2015, according to Government forecasts, at the same time that the 'submarine junction located at the exit of the sea and the point of connection of the cable in the sea located approximately 650 kilometers' will take place.