Atlas Offshore

Atlas Offshore: Linking Morocco and France

The Atlas Offshore cable is a submarine telecommunications system connecting Asilah in Morocco to Marseille in France. Spanning 1,634 kilometers, it is owned by Maroc Telecom and has been listed as in service since 2007, according to GeoCables records. This cable plays a role in linking North Africa to Europe, enabling international data traffic and supporting Morocco's connectivity needs. What makes Atlas Offshore notable is the lack of publicly disclosed technical details about its design capacity, fiber pairs, technology, and supplier. This absence of information limits the ability to assess its full capabilities and operational specifics. Additionally, the cable operates in a corridor with significant redundancy, particularly at Marseille, which is one of the world's busiest submarine cable hubs.

Quick facts

Cable name	Atlas Offshore
Length	1,634 km
Ready for service	2007 (GeoCables database value; no conflicting industry sources surfaced)
Owners	Maroc Telecom
Status	In service
Design capacity	Not disclosed
Fiber pairs	Not disclosed
Supplier	Not disclosed
Technology	Not disclosed
Landing points	Asilah (Morocco), Marseille (France)

Show Atlas Offshore on the interactive cable map

Route

The Atlas Offshore cable connects two landing points: Asilah, a coastal town in northern Morocco, and Marseille, a major port city in southern France. Asilah serves as a gateway for Morocco's international connectivity, while Marseille is a critical hub for submarine cables linking Europe, Africa, and Asia. The cable traverses the Mediterranean Sea, a region dense with submarine cable infrastructure. At Asilah, Atlas Offshore shares its landing site with Canalink, another submarine cable system. At Marseille, it joins an extensive network of cables, including 2Africa, Africa-1, Asia Africa Europe-1 (AAE-1), Blue, EMC West-2, Hawk, IMEWE, India Europe Xpress (IEX), Med Cable Network, Medloop, Medusa Submarine Cable System, PEACE Cable, SeaMeWe-4, SeaMeWe-6, and TE North/TGN-Eurasia/SEACOM/Alexandros/Medex.

Why it was built and what it carries

Atlas Offshore was constructed to enhance Morocco's international connectivity and provide a direct link to Europe. This cable supports data traffic for internet, voice, and other telecommunications services. Its strategic route reflects Morocco's growing demand for reliable international bandwidth and its integration into global networks. Maroc Telecom, the cable's owner, likely uses Atlas Offshore to serve its domestic and international customers, including residential users, businesses, and government entities. However, the absence of disclosed capacity figures makes it difficult to quantify its contribution to Morocco's overall bandwidth.

History: what can be established

GeoCables records indicate that Atlas Offshore became ready for service in 2007. No conflicting dates have been identified in industry sources. While the cable's operational history has not been widely documented, its continued listing as "in service" suggests it remains functional and relevant to Maroc Telecom's operations.

Capacity and technology

Publicly available sources do not disclose Atlas Offshore's design capacity, fiber pair count, supplier, or specific technological features. Without documentation from Maroc Telecom or other industry players, these parameters cannot be reliably determined. This lack of transparency is not uncommon for older cables, especially those operated by regional telecom providers.

Latency: the physics

The theoretical one-way light propagation latency over the cable's 1,634 km wet segment is approximately 8.0 milliseconds, with a round-trip time (RTT) floor of 16.0 milliseconds. However, real-world latency measurements are higher due to additional factors such as land-based network tails, terminal equipment, and routing. Live measurements from remote probes show a minimum RTT of 34.6 milliseconds and an average RTT of 82.3 milliseconds between Asilah and Marseille over 146 checks. These figures reflect the full internet path, not just the cable itself. The higher-than-theoretical latency is consistent with the presence of intermediate network hops and processing delays.

Redundancy: what happens if it breaks

Atlas Offshore operates in a corridor with substantial redundancy, particularly at Marseille, which hosts numerous submarine cables. If Atlas Offshore were to experience a fault, Maroc Telecom could potentially reroute traffic via Canalink at Asilah or through alternative cables at Marseille, such as SeaMeWe-4, AAE-1, or 2Africa. Repairing submarine cables typically involves deploying specialized ships to locate and fix the fault, a process that can take days to weeks depending on the severity and location of the issue.

Bottom line

• Atlas Offshore is a 1,634 km submarine cable connecting Asilah (Morocco) and Marseille (France).
• Owned by Maroc Telecom and listed as in service since 2007.
• Technical details such as design capacity, fiber pairs, supplier, and technology are not publicly disclosed.
• Real-world latency measurements between Asilah and Marseille are significantly higher than theoretical values due to network factors.
• Redundancy is strong at Marseille, with numerous alternative cables available in case of outages.