Mertech Marine
Mertech Marine is a South Africa-based industrial services company that recovers and mechanically recycles end-of-life submarine telecommunication cables into copper, steel, aluminium, and polyethylene for global cable owners and raw-material buyers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersPort Elizabeth, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Mertech Marine does
Mertech Marine (established 1998, headquartered in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, under the Mertech Group) pioneers end-of-life recovery and recycling of submarine telecommunication cables. The company acquires out-of-service cables from cable owners globally, recovers them from the seabed using a fleet of three purpose-built vessels (MV Lida, MV Layla, MV Aniek) operating across the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Pacific, and Indian oceans, and dismantles them at its own factory in Port Elizabeth. The factory uses a custom-designed, fully mechanical (no-smelt) dismantling process that breaks cables into copper, steel, aluminium, and polyethylene — operations are ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certified and aligned with International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) recommendations. Since 2004, the company has recovered in excess of 100,000 km of cable and currently runs at approximately 15,000 km per year, employing 80-120 factory workers on a volume-dependent basis.
The business operates as a B2B industrial services and commodities provider with two intertwined revenue streams: (i) service revenue from cable recovery, relay, route clearance, shore-end, depot, and logistics projects sold directly to submarine cable owners (with logistics and depot services delivered in partnership with WIND in the Netherlands); and (ii) commodity revenue from selling recycled copper, steel cable, steel wire, and HDPE/LDPE polyethylene pellets into local and international markets. Hazardous-material-containing repeaters are cleaned by partner Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (NECSA) before Mertech recycles the residual components. Customers are concentrated in the submarine telecommunications industry — a small, concentrated buyer base — supplemented by industrial raw-material buyers for the recycled commodity output.
Pricing is quote-based on project scope, cable type, volume, and location and is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is direct-enterprise sales coordinated through international liaison offices in Stellenbosch, London, and Amsterdam. The company is privately held by Mertech Group shareholders, with Metier Private Equity appearing as an investor in a 2019 funding event.
Mertech Marine firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Mertech Marine
- Legal name
- Mertech Marine
- Website
- https://mertechmarine.co.za
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Mertech Marine is a South Africa-based industrial services company that recovers and mechanically recycles end-of-life submarine telecommunication cables into copper, steel, aluminium, and polyethylene for global cable owners and raw-material buyers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Mertech Marine is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Port Elizabeth
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Mertech Marine business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Copper Sales: Sale of high-quality recycled copper extracted from submarine cables. The copper is of exceptional quality and purity, marketed in both international and local markets in baled or chipped format.
- Recycled Materials Sales: Sale of recycled materials including steel cable, steel wire, polyethylene (HDPE & LDPE pellets), and aluminum recovered from submarine cables.
- Cable Recovery Services: Recovery services for out-of-service submarine telecommunication cables acquired from cable owners, including relay, survey, route clearance, and depot services.
- Cable Logistics and Depot Services: Specialist cable freighting and full turnkey logistical solutions provided through partnership with WIND in the Netherlands, including shore-end services and route clearance.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Mertech Marine product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Mertech Marine recovers out-of-service submarine telecommunication cables from the seabed using its own fleet of three specialized vessels and recycles them at its own mechanical dismantling factory in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The facility breaks cables into component parts including high-purity copper, steel, aluminum, and polyethylene without smelting. The company also offers shore-end services, depot services, cable logistics, and route clearance as turnkey solutions to submarine cable owners globally, and sells recycled raw materials to industrial buyers.
Product overview
Mertech Marine is a service and recycling company (established 1998) offering turnkey solutions for submarine telecommunication cable recovery and recycling. The core offering consists of marine-based cable recovery services using a fleet of three specialized vessels (MV Lida, MV Layla, MV Aniek), combined with an in-house mechanical cable dismantling facility in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Recovery services are complemented by shore-end services, depot services, cable logistics, and route clearance services. The recycling operation produces four main products: Recycled Copper, Steel Cable, Steel Wire, and Recycled Polyethylene pellets. The company recovers approximately 15,000km of cable per year using its own resources.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Submarine Cable Recovery Services Marine-based recovery of out-of-service submarine telecommunication cables from the seabed using a fleet of three specialized vessels, aligned with ICPC recommendations. Service is sold to submarine cable owners globally.
- Submarine Cable Recycling Services Mechanical dismantling and recycling of recovered submarine telecommunication cables into component materials including copper, steel, aluminum, and polyethylene using an environmentally friendly process without smelting.
- Shore-End Services
Quantifiable outcome
- Recovered over 100,000km of out-of-service submarine cable since 2004
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Mertech Marine
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Mertech Marine technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Mertech Marine partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- WIND (Netherlands)coreKey long-term partnership with WIND in the Netherlands for providing turnkey cable depot and cable freighting/logistics solutions. Through WIND, Mertech Marine has access to a large network of suitable vessels globally at competitive rates. The relationship has been in existence in various forms since 2009 and enables full turnkey solutions for both internal projects and external customers.
- Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (NECSA)coreNECSA handles the cleaning of repeaters (optical amplifiers) containing potentially hazardous materials. Mertech Marine has all required permits to handle, convey, store, and process repeaters in South Africa. After receiving clean repeaters back from NECSA, Mertech Marine recycles the remaining components.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Mertech Marine competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- WIND: Netherlands-based submarine cable depot and logistics services company that has been Mertech Marine's core logistics partner since 2009. While not a direct competitor, WIND operates in the submarine cable support ecosystem and provides turnkey depot, freighting, and vessel-network capabilities adjacent to Mertech's offerings.
Broad incumbents
- Global Marine Systems: Long-established UK-headquartered submarine cable installation, maintenance, and repair operator with a global fleet of cable ships. Overlaps with Mertech across the submarine cable services market and possesses the asset base and customer relationships to expand into recovery services.
- Orange Marine: French submarine cable services subsidiary of Orange operating a fleet of cable ships for installation, maintenance, and burial of submarine cables. Comparable to Mertech as a vessel-based submarine cable service provider, though primarily focused on installation rather than end-of-life recycling.
- Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN): French submarine cable manufacturer and installer serving telecom operators and hyperscalers globally. Operates in the same submarine cable ecosystem as Mertech but primarily designs and installs new cable systems rather than recovering and recycling retired ones.
- TE Subcom: TE Connectivity's SubCom division is a leading US-headquartered submarine cable installation and maintenance provider with extensive global operations and owned cable ships. Comparable as a submarine cable services player, though much larger and focused on new installation rather than end-of-life recovery and recycling.
Regional players
- E-marine: UAE-based submarine cable installation and maintenance company serving the Middle East, Indian Ocean, and surrounding regions. Comparable to Mertech as a submarine cable services operator with similar vessel-based model, though regionally concentrated rather than globally distributed.
- IT International Telecom: Canada-based submarine cable installation, maintenance, and marine services company with operations across the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and North Atlantic. Comparable to Mertech as a vessel-based submarine cable services provider serving overlapping ocean regions.
Direct peers
- Subsea Environmental Services: A UK-based submarine cable recovery specialist that recovers out-of-service cables and ships armoring, copper conductors, polymer insulation and optical repeaters to Mertech's factory for dismantling and recycling. Directly competes with Mertech in the cable-recovery step of the same value chain.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Mertech Marine social profiles
Digital presenceMertech Marine compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Mertech Marine financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Mertech Marine leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Mertech Marine funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Mertech Marine M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Mertech Marine
What does Mertech Marine do?
Mertech Marine recovers out-of-service submarine telecommunication cables from the seabed using its own fleet of three specialized vessels and recycles them at its own mechanical dismantling factory in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The facility breaks cables into component parts including high-purity copper, steel, aluminum, and polyethylene without smelting. The company also offers shore-end services, depot services, cable logistics, and route clearance as turnkey solutions to submarine cable owners globally, and sells recycled raw materials to industrial buyers.
Is Mertech Marine a public or private company?
Mertech Marine is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Mertech Marine founded?
Mertech Marine was founded in 1998. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Mertech Marine based?
Mertech Marine is headquartered in Port Elizabeth, United States, in the North America region.
How does Mertech Marine make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Copper Sales are the primary driver. The others are recycled Materials Sales, cable Recovery Services and cable Logistics and Depot Services.
Who are Mertech Marine's main competitors?
WIND is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are Global Marine Systems, Orange Marine, Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) and TE Subcom. Regional players are E-marine and IT International Telecom. Subsea Environmental Services is listed as a direct peer.
Does Mertech Marine have an API?
No public API is recorded for Mertech Marine.