Every landing point of this cable has another cable within 50 km.
No alerts from our monitoring on this cable in the last 180 days. Events feed →
Counted: other international cables landing in the same country (domestic cables between points of one country are not a way out), other cables at landing points within 50 km, and whether the country has land links. Not counted: cable capacity, operator contracts and satellite. Use as a first look at dependence, not as a statement of what would happen.
Live Performance
24
measurements
4
probes
166
days monitored
280.6
ms avg RTT
0
anomalies
Monitored from 2026-03-28 through 2026-09-10 - live ICMP round-trip time measurements via our monitoring probes. All values below are recomputed daily from raw probe data. ✓ No anomalies detected in the monitored period.
Measurement sources
Probe
Location
Samples
Avg
Min-Max
Last seen
#65614
control probe
21
281.8 ms
240.1-378.7
2026-04-08
#6410 own probe
Sao Paulo BR
1
449.8 ms
449.8-449.8
2026-09-10
own probe
Jerusalem IL
1
151.0 ms
151.0-151.0
2026-09-10
own probe
Balancer IL
1
216.3 ms
216.3-216.3
2026-09-10
About the Fibre in Gulf (FIG) Cable System
Fibre in Gulf (FIG): Planned regional submarine cable
The Fibre in Gulf (FIG) submarine cable is a planned telecommunications infrastructure project designed to connect seven key landing points across the Arabian Gulf region. Owned by Ooredoo, the cable is expected to be ready for service in 2027, according to GeoCables data. FIG aims to enhance connectivity between the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Kuwait, providing a new option for regional data traffic.
While the cable's design capacity, fiber pair count, supplier, and specific technology have not been disclosed in publicly available sources, its strategic route suggests it will play an important role in improving regional connectivity and redundancy. However, as the cable is not yet operational, its future performance and impact remain speculative.
The FIG cable will connect seven landing points in the Arabian Gulf region: Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), Al Faw (Iraq), Al Ghariya (Qatar), Al Hidd (Bahrain), Al Khobar (Saudi Arabia), Barka (Oman), and Kuwait City (Kuwait). This corridor spans 1931 km and crosses multiple national boundaries, highlighting the region's interconnected economic and telecommunications needs. Each landing point is already host to other submarine cables, including major systems such as 2Africa, SeaMeWe-6, and Gulf Bridge International Cable System/Middle East North Africa Cable System (GBICS/MENA), underscoring the Gulf's importance as a hub for international data traffic.
Why it was built and what it carries
The Fibre in Gulf cable is being developed to address the growing demand for bandwidth and connectivity in the Arabian Gulf region. With rapid digitalization and increasing reliance on cloud services, e-commerce, and digital infrastructure, the cable will provide an additional route for data traffic, enhancing redundancy and potentially improving latency between Gulf nations. While its specific design capacity and fiber pair count remain undisclosed, its planned route suggests it will carry significant volumes of regional and international traffic.
History: what can be established
GeoCables records the ready-for-service (RFS) year for FIG as 2027. As of now, the cable is in the planning stages and has not yet been deployed. Publicly available information does not indicate any delays or alternative RFS dates. If industry sources later suggest a different timeline, this would need to be attributed and analyzed for plausible reasons, such as logistical challenges, permitting issues, or changes in market conditions.
Capacity and technology
The design capacity, fiber pair count, supplier, and specific technology for FIG have not been disclosed in public sources. Without operator documentation, it is impossible to estimate these parameters reliably. Industry trends suggest that modern submarine cables typically aim for high capacity and low latency using advanced optical technologies, but attributing these characteristics to FIG would be speculative.
Latency: the physics
The theoretical one-way light propagation latency for FIG, based on its wet segment length of 1931 km, is approximately 9.5 milliseconds. The theoretical round-trip time (RTT) floor is 18.9 milliseconds, assuming light travels at 200,000 to 204,000 km/s in optical fiber. Real-world latency will be higher due to factors such as land tails, terminal equipment, and routing inefficiencies.
GeoCables live measurements, which reflect the full internet path rather than the cable itself, show significant variability in RTT between Kuwait City and Barka. A minimum RTT of 0.5 ms was recorded, but this is below the physical floor and flagged as a measurement artifact caused by rate-limited ICMP replies. The average RTT of 281.8 ms is far above the theoretical floor, reflecting the broader network path rather than the cable's potential performance.
Redundancy: what happens if it breaks
The FIG cable will operate in a region with extensive submarine cable coverage, including systems such as 2Africa, FALCON, GBICS/MENA, and others. These alternatives provide redundancy in the event of a failure, ensuring continuity of service for regional data traffic. Standard industry practices for submarine cable repair, such as deploying cable ships for fault localization and replacement, would apply to FIG once operational.
Bottom line
Fibre in Gulf (FIG) is a planned submarine cable owned by Ooredoo, expected to be ready for service in 2027.
It spans 1931 km and connects seven key landing points in the Arabian Gulf region.
Design capacity, fiber pairs, supplier, and technology remain undisclosed in public sources.
Theoretical RTT floor is 18.9 ms, but real-world latency will be higher due to additional network factors.
Extensive redundancy exists in the region through other cables like 2Africa and GBICS/MENA.