Navigating the Subsea Cable Challenge: UK’s Path to Clean Energy Excellence

In the rapidly evolving landscape of clean energy, the reliability of subsea cable systems stands as a pivotal barrier. The UK, with its ambitious offshore wind targets, is no exception. The Global Underwater Hub (GUH) has recently published a white paper that sheds light on how the UK can tackle this critical issue and ensure its clean energy ambitions remain on track.

Understanding the Challenge

Subsea cables are the lifelines of offshore wind infrastructure, transmitting electricity from wind farms to the grid. The global investment in offshore wind farms is projected to reach over $800 billion by 2030. For the UK to achieve its net-zero emissions goal by 2050, the generating capacity from offshore wind must increase by an astonishing 1,120 GW. This scale of expansion necessitates the installation and maintenance of hundreds of thousands of kilometers of reliable subsea cables. The performance and reliability of these cables are therefore crucial to delivering the UK’s clean offshore power ambition and global net-zero targets.

The Impact of Cable Failures

However, subsea cables are highly susceptible to damage during installation and operation. This leads to substantial insurance claims and costly downtime. GUH has identified cable performance and reliability as a major issue that needs to be solved, especially as floating offshore wind, which requires even more complex dynamic cables, becomes an increasing percentage of the overall installed base.

The UK’s Opportunity

With a world-leading installed base of offshore wind capacity and a strong project pipeline, combined with a stable policy framework, GUH says there is a significant opportunity for the UK’s underwater supply chain to lead the way in subsea cable systems. The Offshore Wind Industrial Growth Plan, set to be implemented in 2024, identifies future electrical systems and cables and the next generation of offshore installation, operation, and maintenance as two of five areas in which the UK should be a world leader.

Creating a New Generation of Products and Services

Unlike fixed offshore wind, floating offshore wind has few standards and no established supply chain. Starting with this ‘clean slate’ and leveraging the vast experience over five decades in offshore oil and gas, the UK can create a new generation of products and services that will unlock this emerging sector.

Establishing the UK Subsea Cable System Forum

To tackle cable performance and reliability and become a center of excellence for subsea cable systems in floating offshore wind, GUH is establishing the UK Subsea Cable System Forum. This forum will ensure that the entire supply chain can effectively influence standards and policy to improve reliability, cost-effectiveness, and quality of cable systems supplied in the UK.

Driving Innovation and Collaboration

The forum, through the development of an agreed roadmap, led by an industry steering committee and working with partners across the sector, will drive innovation and improvements in systems-based design, data sharing, and quality control. As a result of this increased collaboration, the forum will influence the development of the standards needed to reduce risk and increase performance.

Piecing it all together

Looking at the bigger picture, the holistic approach by the UK Subsea Cable System Forum will avoid duplication and foster the collaboration needed to deliver the standards required for a new generation of products and services to the global floating offshore wind market. By establishing itself as a center of excellence for reliable subsea cable systems, the UK can enhance the economic viability of offshore wind projects and accelerate the development of floating offshore wind.

Sources

• AGCC.co.uk – Global Underwater Hub establishes taskforce to tackle subsea cable reliability and performance
• Energy Pedia – UK: Global Underwater Hub establishes taskforce to tackle subsea cable reliability and performance
• Global Underwater Hub – Global Underwater Hub Establishes Taskforce to Tackle Subsea Cable Reliability and Performance
• Marine Technology News – Global Underwater Hub Forms Taskforce To Improve Subsea
• Renewable Energy Magazine – Global Underwater Hub establishes taskforce to tackle subsea cable reliability and performance