Global Marine has selected Orange Marine’s next-generation Alpha remotely operated vehicle, commonly known as an ROV, to equip its upcoming cable maintenance vessel. The announcement signals a notable addition to the global cable repair fleet, combining advanced subsea vehicle technology with a purpose-built vessel designed for fiber-optic submarine cable maintenance operations.
Alpha ROV Brings Advanced Capability to Submarine Cable Maintenance
The Alpha ROV is designed and manufactured by Orange Marine at its facility in France. It has been developed specifically for telecommunications and power subsea cable operations, making it well suited for the demands placed on a modern cable repair fleet.
From a technical standpoint, the Alpha ROV features 450 kW of installed power, with 300 kW dedicated to jetting. It is capable of operating at depths of up to 3,000 metres and can carry out cable burial operations down to three metres, depending on seabed conditions. The vehicle uses a tracked configuration that can be adapted to a free-swimming mode, offering flexibility across different mission profiles.
The ROV supports a broad range of subsea operations. These include cable detection, inspection and survey, cutting and gripping, and burial and reburial. Importantly, the unit being supplied to Global Marine will be customized to meet the specific operational requirements of the company’s future cable maintenance vessel. This level of tailoring is expected to strengthen how the cable repair fleet performs across inspection, maintenance, protection and repair tasks on submarine cable systems worldwide.
New Hybrid Vessel Under Construction
The Alpha ROV is set to operate aboard Global Marine’s next-generation cable maintenance vessel, which is currently under construction at Colombo Dockyard in Sri Lanka. The vessel is scheduled for delivery in Q4 2029 and has been designed specifically for fiber-optic submarine cable repair operations. It is a hybrid-powered vessel, reflecting growing industry attention to fuel efficiency and environmental responsibility in subsea cable operations.
Once delivered, the combination of the new vessel and Alpha ROV will form a significant enhancement to the cable repair fleet. The pairing is expected to provide Global Marine with improved capabilities for submarine cable maintenance across inspection, protection and repair activities. This future capability positions the company to support long-term maintenance agreements with cable owners operating critical undersea infrastructure.
The collaboration between Global Marine and Orange Marine brings together decades of experience in subsea cable operations. Orange Marine has built specialized engineering and industrial expertise in the design and manufacture of subsea vehicles over several decades in France, supporting multiple operators in the submarine cable industry with vehicles, long-term maintenance support and, in some cases, dedicated operational teams. Global Marine’s decision to adopt the Alpha ROV for its cable repair fleet reflects the growing need for technologically advanced and operationally flexible assets as demand for submarine cable maintenance continues to rise alongside global network expansion.