Moratelindo International Cable System-1 (MIC-1)

Overview

The Moratelindo International Cable System-1 (MIC-1) is a short bilateral submarine cable connecting Indonesia and Singapore across the Strait of Malacca. At 70 kilometres in length, it serves the narrow corridor between these two neighbouring countries, providing a direct link between their respective landing facilities.

Route and Landings

In Indonesia, the cable lands at Batam, an island in the Riau Islands province situated close to the southern tip of Singapore. In Singapore, the cable lands at Changi North, on the eastern coast of the island.

Ownership and Operators

MIC-1 is wholly owned by Moratelindo, an Indonesian telecommunications infrastructure company. As the sole owner, Moratelindo operates the cable to support connectivity between its domestic network and Singapore's internationally connected exchange infrastructure.

Status and Timeline

MIC-1 entered service in 2008 and has been operational for approximately 18 years. It continues to operate as an active cable in the Indonesia–Singapore corridor.

Regional Context

The Indonesia–Singapore corridor is served by a number of submarine cables, many of which are substantially longer international systems. MIC-1, at 70 km, is among the shortest cables touching this corridor, longer than only 6% of the other 52 cables sharing the same countries. By contrast, cables such as EAC-C2C (36,500 km, RFS 2002), the Asia-America Gateway Cable System (20,000 km, RFS 2009), and Bifrost (19,888 km, RFS 2025) are intercontinental systems that use Singapore or Indonesia as endpoints on much broader routes. MIC-1 is not designed for long-haul transit; it functions as a short direct link between Batam and Changi North.

Measured performance over the past 60 days, drawn from 76 ping tests, shows an average round-trip latency of 263.4 ms, with a best recorded result of 249.0 ms. These figures reflect routing characteristics beyond the physical cable segment itself, as the 70 km span between the two landing points would alone produce a far lower propagation delay.

Strategic Role

MIC-1 provides Moratelindo with a direct, operator-controlled connection between its Batam landing station in Indonesia and the Changi North landing point in Singapore. Singapore hosts 33 submarine cables across 8 landing points, making it one of the most densely connected cable hubs in the Asia-Pacific region. By landing at Changi North, MIC-1 places Moratelindo in proximity to that broader international cable ecosystem. The cable enables the operator to extend its Indonesian network into Singapore without relying on third-party infrastructure for the cross-strait segment.