Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a fine of USD6,500 to the owner of the Ocean Surveyor vessel for damages caused to the reef of Hulhumale’. The vessel caused the damage to the eastern side of Hulhumale’ while conducting surveys for the project to install submarine cables to connect to an international submarine cable system.
EPA stated that it was informed by the crew that the vessel’s multi-beam echo sounder and the poll of its ultra-short baseline acoustic positioning system had scraped the reef while conducting the survey. A subsequent investigation by EPA and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) Coast Guard on April 14 found that the reef had been damaged by the incident. Therefore, a fine of USD6,500 has been issued to the owner of the vessel, to be paid within 30 days.
On February 21, Ocean Connect Maldives (OCM) a subsidiary of the 100% government-owned Maldives Fund Management Corporation Limited (MFMC), signed an agreement with Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited of India to establish a direct connection to the India-Asia-Xpress (IAX) submarine cable. The project would provide international gateway connections to the East and the West, enabling direct integrations from Singapore to Europe while foregoing existing reliance on third-party hubs such as Sri Lanka. The project is expected to lay the foundation for a new digital infrastructure in the Maldives, which will support growth in digital products, services, and data consumption.
OCM stated the survey component of the project is underway at the Ocean Surveyor vessel. OCM stated the survey will provide integrated geophysical and geotechnical data to finalise the installment plans and procedures of the submarine cable. As such, the seabed depth profiles and photographic maps will be produced as part of the survey.