Orange can no longer stand copper theft and is making it known. The historic operator, who sees users being deprived of their internet connection, is overwhelmed by the phenomenon, comparing the bandits to real “heavy artillery”.
This time, it’s too much for Orange! The company, owner of the ADSL copper network in France, which is also destined to disappear by 2030, suffered no less than 1,600 cable thefts across France last year. We are talking here about 1,200 kilometers cut, major financial losses and thousands of customers deprived of telephone and ADSL. Among the regions most affected by the phenomenon, we find Occitanie, where Orange estimates its damage at several hundred thousand euros. More than 200 gendarmes are mobilized there to try to contain it.
Several cable thefts observed every day in France
The figures are, it must be said, alarming. 1,600 cable thefts in 2023 alone, this corresponds to more than four thefts every day in the country. Nicolas Brochot, regional delegate for Orange Occitanie, confirms that these thefts are not trivial and that the people behind these operations are particularly organized, in that they require heavy goods vehicles and equipment to cut the cables.
The copper network, crucial for the country’s communications, is the main target of these thefts. Damaging the largest cables, which are up to 1,800 copper pairs, impacts not only Orange’s services, but also the country’s vital services. Hospitals and law enforcement are among the most critical victims.
And the damage does not stop at material losses, since it affects both companies and individuals, regardless of the operator chosen. As for disruptions, they are not limited to a brief interruption of the connection. Repair operations can in fact be very long, lasting in weeks, sometimes months.
While Orange despaired, the response was organized
The most terrible thing for Orange is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to ensure proper monitoring of copper. The complexity of buried networks, often associated with road or rail infrastructure, complicates this monitoring. A boon for the organization of copper trafficking, which is perfectly aware of this.
Nevertheless, the response is being organized and recently led to an operation welcomed by the operator, thanks to the mobilization of some 200 gendarmes. In January, around ten arrests took place, for damage estimated between 200,000 and 400,000 euros. In collaboration with the Ministries of the Interior and Justice, an agreement to combat malicious intent has even been put in place, with the aim of facilitating the sharing of information.
At such a level of degradation, we inevitably say that all means are good to try to stem the theft of red gold. Orange would undoubtedly like to advance the time until the extinction of the copper network to definitively confirm the switch to optical fiber. Until then, we will have to hold out for a few more years and ensure continuity of service for the French who are currently deprived of fiber.
Source : France 3 Regions
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