What is an IoT SIM and how does it differ from a consumer SIM?

An IoT SIM is designed for machine-to-machine data. According to POND IoT, eSIM is embedded and activated remotely, while a standard SIM card is used in devices with standard slots and can be replaced [3]. For water-quality sensors, data-only plans start at €0.005/MB [8].

Which mobile network does a Martinique eSIM use?

The sources do not name specific Martinique carriers. Hologram describes a carrier-agnostic model where a single profile can access multiple carriers in a network [1][6]. Procurement teams must ask their provider for the current multi-carrier coverage list for Martinique.

What is SIM management for an IoT deployment?

SIM management, or CMP platform, controls SIM status, usage, and connectivity settings across deployments from one platform [3]. Onomondo lists API integrations and top-to-bottom network insights as CMP features [4]. It is the system that produces the carrier identity log.

Is my phone compatible with the Martinique eSIM?

This guide covers M2M data-only eSIMs, not consumer phone eSIMs. For water-quality sensor stations, the eSIM is soldered or embedded in the device. Phone compatibility is not relevant; module compatibility with SGP.32 is the procurement question [4][8].

What if the Martinique eSIM runs out of data?

For low-consumption sensors, data pricing is pay-as-you-go from €0.005/MB [8]. If a station exhausts its plan, the CMP platform can alert and you can top up or switch profiles OTA. There is no voice or hotspot function on these M2M plans.

Can I make phone calls or use hotspot sharing with the Martinique eSIM?

No. These are M2M data-only SIMs for IoT devices. POND IoT lists eSIM for sealed or hard-to-access devices, not voice [3]. The procurement focus is data volume, carrier identity logging, and API-based management.

Martinique Water-Quality Sensor Stations: eSIM Procurement Guide with €0.005/MB Data and 10-Profile eUICC

September 26, 2026 · 5 min read · Regional Info

Procurement guide for water-quality stations in Martinique: carrier landscape, eSIM SGP.32 compliance, and €0.005/MB data pricing for low-consumption sensors.

An IoT SIM is a subscriber identity module designed for machine-to-machine data, not voice. For a 100-station water-quality deployment in Martinique, data costs start at €0.005/MB for low-consumption sensors according to iot.cards [8], and eUICC hardware is quoted per project. The procurement decision is between catalog-priced multi-carrier SIMs and project-quoted eSIM profiles with SGP.32 compliance.

WHY IT MATTERS

The procurement constraint changed when eUICC profiles became remotely switchable over the air. Before, a carrier change required a physical SIM swap at each station [5]. Now, a single eUICC can hold up to 10 simultaneous profiles depending on the variant [8], so a water-quality station in Martinique can switch carriers without a field visit. According to Hologram, this removes carrier lock-in and hard swap requirements [1][6].

Regulatory compliance adds a second boundary. Hologram's guide states: 'Before deploying, confirm compliance with government and carrier regulations and ask your providers about their compliance policies' [1]. For a 100-station deployment, that means 100 carrier identity records per reporting interval. Deployment teams report that carrier identity logs become the audit trail for cold-chain compliance — the same log mechanism applies to water-quality sample chain-of-custody.

TYPICAL APPLICATIONS

Fixed Surface Water Stations

Fixed stations on rivers or reservoirs report pH, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen every 15 minutes. A Global IoT SIM with a catalog-priced low-consumption plan at €0.005/MB [8] is sufficient if the station stays within one carrier's LTE-M footprint. Choose eSIM when the station is sealed and cannot be opened for a physical SIM swap [3].

Mobile Sampling Buoys

Mobile buoys drift between coastal zones, so carrier coverage changes. A multi-carrier SIM that switches networks when coverage or performance drops [3] reduces single-carrier dependency. For a 50-buoy fleet, use the CMP platform's API to automate profile switching based on location, and budget for a project quote because eUICC hardware is quoted per project by volume [8].

Groundwater Monitoring Wells

Wells in remote areas may have only NB-IoT coverage. Onomondo lists NB-IoT SIM and LTE-M SIM as separate form factors [4]. For 200+ wells, request a project quote to bundle eUICC modules and profile management; for a 20-well pilot, catalog pricing on a Global IoT SIM is enough.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION / COMPARISON TABLE

The table below compares physical SIM and eUICC across six procurement dimensions; eUICC supports up to 10 profiles [8].

Dimension	Physical IoT SIM	eUICC (eSIM)	Procurement implication
---	---	---	---
Data pricing	€0.005/MB catalog [8]	Project quote per volume [8]	Catalog for <50 stations
Carrier switching	Requires physical swap [5]	OTA profile switch [2]	eUICC when field access is restricted
Profile capacity	1 carrier per card [5]	Up to 10 profiles [8]	eUICC for multi-carrier coverage
Sealed enclosure	Cannot be sealed permanently [3]	Embedded, sealed [3]	eUICC for submerged or sealed stations
Compliance log	Carrier identity log if platform supports	Carrier identity log via API [4]	Both, but eUICC enables remote audit
Minimum order	Catalog pricing available [8]	Volume-based project quote [8]	Catalog for pilot; eUICC for >200 stations

COST MODEL / TCO

Data Connectivity Costs

A water-quality station reporting 10 KB every 15 minutes sends about 28.8 MB/month (10 KB × 4 × 24 × 30). At €0.005/MB from iot.cards [8], data cost is €0.144/month or €1.73/year per station. For a 100-station deployment, that is €173/year in connectivity.

Hardware, Platform, and Installation

eUICC hardware and profiles are quoted per project based on volume [8]; no catalog price is published in the sources. CMP platform pricing is also quote-required. For a 100-station deployment, request a quote that bundles eUICC modules, SGP.32 profile management [4], and RESTful M2M API access for carrier identity log export.

Payback Logic

If remote provisioning avoids one physical SIM swap per station per year, 100 stations avoid 100 field visits. The sources do not publish field labor rates, so procurement teams must use their own truck-roll cost to calculate payback. The data cost alone is €1.73/year per station at the €0.005/MB catalog rate [8].

PROCUREMENT REALITY CHECK

Deployment teams report that carrier identity logs become the audit trail for cold-chain compliance. For a 50-station water-quality deployment in Martinique, the same log must record which carrier carried each 15-minute sample transmission. Data cost for 50 stations at 28.8 MB/month each is 50 × €0.144 = €7.20/month or €86.40/year based on the €0.005/MB catalog rate [8]. Hardware and platform remain project-quoted. The vendor selection logic: require API export of carrier identity logs before signing.

FROM THE FIELD

Deployment teams report that carrier identity logs become the audit trail for cold-chain compliance. Procurement managers note that if the CMP platform's API does not export that log, the compliance evidence is locked in the vendor portal. For water-quality stations, that means for every 15-minute sample transmission the log must show the carrier — the RESTful M2M API is not a convenience, it is the audit mechanism.

SELECTION NOTES: CATALOG PRICING VS PROJECT QUOTE

When station count is under 50, data consumption is under 50 MB/month per station, and the deployment stays within a single carrier's LTE-M or NB-IoT footprint, catalog pricing on a Global IoT SIM is sufficient [8]. When station count exceeds 200, or when the deployment requires multi-carrier switching across Martinique's coastal and inland zones, request a project quote for eUICC hardware and SGP.32 profile management [4][8]. If the CMP platform must expose carrier identity logs via RESTful M2M API for audit, include that in the quote scope.

In short: catalog pricing is enough for a pilot or small fleet with one carrier and no API audit requirement. Project quote is required for eUICC, multi-carrier, and API-based compliance logging.