Subsea Cables

Global focus on climate change and the Green Energy Transition along with security of supply has increased the demand for subsea power cables. Wind, wave and tidal energy generators use submarine power transmission to deliver renewable energy to national grids for distribution to homes and businesses.  Electricity network operators use subsea power cables to interconnect power grids between countries or between islands and the mainland. 

Increased interest in offshore energy hubs to optimise the spatial efficiency of offshore wind farms and interconnectors and possibly combining power-to-gas technologies is an exciting new concept.

The world continues to consume increasing amounts of data and there is increasing demand for internet connectivity with higher speed and larger capacity required to support the rapid growth of the internet.  The vast majority of global communications are via fibre optic submarine cables.  This demand for connectivity is driving growth in the telecom cable sector and the trend is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

Subsea cable installation and operations can be difficult to manage due to a variety of uncertainties surrounding marine operations. It is important for electricity and telecommunication network operators to partner with an experienced company that understands how to navigate cables projects within the marine environment. 

Intertek has extensive experience providing subsea cable services worldwide. We deliver specialist technical services to companies throughout all stages of offshore development including feasibility, design, construction and operation. Since 1997 we have supported numerous HVDC interconnector projects and cable systems for offshore wind farms including inter-array and export cables.  Our services help reduce risks for workers and our clients, optimise cost and ensure protection of the environment.

Our experts are well versed in the complexities of subsea cables projects and provide valuable technical support throughout your project’s life cycle. We analyse, interpret and manage marine surveys to help you better understand the condition of the seabed of potential asset locations providing you with Total Quality Assurance. Intertek’s geophysical and geotechnical assessments utilize a variety of techniques to identify seabed and sub-bottom conditions that help determine potential engineering constraints and/or safety hazards. Once we have assessed the data to determine seabed and sediment conditions our cable burial assessments provide an analysis of risk to optimise requirements for cable burial and a tool to manage ongoing risk to the asset. You can then make informed decisions about the best method to install your subsea cable. Intertek also provides Owners Engineer services to manage all aspects of the technical engineering of your subsea cable project. Our permitting experts have developed a detailed understanding of the various consenting requirements in the UK Countries and the Republic of Ireland.  We also work with partners in other jurisdictions who have the local knowledge to support the permitting of international cables projects.

Our subsea cable services also include:

• Marine planning and operation support
• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
• Consents and permitting
• Regulator and stakeholder engagement
• Crossing agreement negotiation support
• Marine construction management and supervision
• Construction support advice
• Survey and EPC tender evaluation
• Offshore survey installation/construction client representative
• Metocean (Meteorology and Oceanography)
• Environmental Modelling (e.g. Sediment and scour assessment)
• GIS based asset management
• Marine health and safety