Europe’s subsea cable infrastructure, the backbone of its digital economy and energy transition, is facing mounting risks from geopolitical tension, climate impacts, and lack of preparedness. In a joint position statement, the European Subsea Cables Association (ESCA) and the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) have warned that, regulatory barriers, a shortage of skilled offshore workers and the lack of a readily available solutions are compromising the continent’s ability to repair damaged cables.
The statement comes in response to the European Commission’s Cable Security Action Plan, which calls for improvements in prevention, detection, response, and deterrence to address threats to submarine cables. Industry leaders welcome the plan but caution that without direct collaboration between public bodies and the submarine cable industry, Europe may fall short of the resilience now urgently required.
Subsea telecommunications cables carry over 99 per cent of global intercontinental data traffic; with power cables increasing amounts of renewable power as well as sharing power between countries in Europe. Damage to this infrastructure, whether through accidental fishing, anchoring, natural hazards or other causes, can disrupt financial systems, energy flows, and digital communications in real-time. Yet, repair operations are increasingly subject to delays, not only due to capacity constraints but also to inconsistent and outdated permitting regimes across EU member states.
Telecommunications cables are currently supported by global maintenance zones and industry-led agreements, which have proven effective in enabling rapid mobilisation. However, the fleet of vessels supporting this model is ageing, with limited investment certainty.
Power cable repair is a different challenge, involving more complex operations, diverse ownership models, and limited regulatory cohesion. Vessels may be in high demand for installation projects when emergency repairs are needed, while cross-border permitting obstacles can create critical delays. Power cables are larger, much more complex and more difficult to repair than telecommunication cables, meaning the impact of delay can be more significant.
Iain Grainger, IMCA CEO
Our sector provides the marine capability that underpins Europe’s energy and digital transitions. However, without coordinated investment and strategic support, there is a danger that capacity gaps will emerge at precisely the moment when we can least afford them.
Stephen Dawe, ESCA Chairman, stated: “Subsea cables are the invisible infrastructure of modern Europe. Industry plans resilience in system design, and governments needs to plan resilience through focussed policy. Governments and regulators must work with the industry to ensure that policy and legislation are not blockers to being able to fix subsea cables quickly when faults occur. Delays caused by policy or permitting are not acceptable in an environment where risk is increasing and resilience is paramount.”
Iain Grainger, IMCA CEO, added: “Our sector provides the marine capability that underpins Europe’s energy and digital transitions. However, without coordinated investment and strategic support, there is a danger that capacity gaps will emerge at precisely the moment when we can least afford them. The EU Action Plan is a positive step forward. Now is the time for decisive follow-through across Member States and in partnership with industry.”
The statement identifies a clear set of measures: greater public–private investment to enhance the repair fleet and support strategic equipment reserves; national training and workforce programmes to address skills shortages and succession gaps; and urgent reform of regulatory frameworks to enable faster response times to unexpected outages.
Europe’s digital and energy systems are deeply interconnected. Recent high profile incidents in the Baltic and North Sea have increased public awareness that vulnerabilities beneath the sea are not abstract. They are a tangible and pressing strategic concern. ESCA and IMCA stress that subsea cable resilience must be treated as a matter of national and continental importance, supported by coherent policy, coordinated response, and sustained investment.
The organisations call on European institutions and national governments to engage directly with industry to protect what they describe as “the invisible lifelines of the modern world.”
