2026 Valentia Island Symposium on Subsea Cable Security and Resilience

From 22-24 April 2026, the ICPC was pleased to be a joint sponsor of the 2026 Valentia Island Symposium on Subsea Cable Security and Resilience—bringing together representatives from industry, government and academia to exchange perspectives on submarine cable resilience, with a particular focus on the repair and maintenance ecosystem.

This year’s theme, ‘Repair: Past, Present, Future,’ underscored both the maturity of existing repair capabilities and the growing complexity of sustaining resilience in an evolving operational and geopolitical environment.

Discussions highlighted the central role of timely cable repair in overall network resilience, as well as the complementary responsibilities of industry and governments across a range of scenarios.

ICPC & ASEF Sign MoU

The Africa Subsea & Ecosystem Forum (ASEF) works to strengthen awareness, education, talent, technology, and policy across Africa’s submarine cable sector.

To support this mission, ICPC and ASEF signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the 2026 ICPC Plenary in Athens, Greece—marking a step forward in strengthening collaboration across the global industry.

With continued investment and development of submarine cable infrastructure across the continent, it was also announced at the conclusion of the Plenary that the 2027 meeting will take place in Nairobi, Kenya. We look forward to welcoming you there!

Pictured above from left to right: Ryan Wopschall (ICPC General Manager) and Douglas Njenga (ASEF Director and ICPC EC Member).

New ICPC Viewpoint on Fibre Optic Sensing & Submarine Cables

ICPC has published a new Viewpoint examining the rapid development of fibre optic sensing in submarine telecommunications and energy cables, and the regulatory, commercial, and technical questions that arise. The paper outlines the principal sensing techniques now being explored, including distributed acoustic and temperature sensing, optical interferometry and state of polarisation, and considers their potential applications in ocean science, infrastructure protection and cable security.

The Viewpoint emphasises the need for balanced and informed policy discussion as these technologies evolve. While fibre sensing presents opportunities for improved environmental monitoring and enhanced protection of critical infrastructure, the Viewpoint underlines that submarine cables are deployed and operated primarily for commercial communications and energy transmission. ICPC therefore encourages governments to work collaboratively with industry, to ensure that innovation and investment in global connectivity are not inadvertently constrained.

ASEF / WIOCC Subsea & Digital Infrastructure Summit 2025

On 4th of December 2025, ICPC Executive Committee member Douglas Njenga of WIOCC attended the ASEF / WIOCC Subsea & Digital Infrastructure Summit 2025 in Nairobi. This event was exclusively for final-year engineering students and early-career professionals which included hands-on-labs, technical and career sessions. Invited speakers shared insights on terrestrial and subsea systems, high-capacity networks, cloud infrastructure, AI, and the future of Africa’s digital infrastructure.

European Subsea Cables Association 64th Plenary (ESCA)

From 1-2 October 2025, ESCA held its Plenary in Giardini Naxos, Sicily. ICPC Executive Committee Member Andy Palmer-Felgate (from Member organisation Meta Platforms, Inc.) provided the ICPC update to delegates.

Submarine Networks World 2025

ICPC was proud to partner with the organisers of Submarine Networks World.

Along with many of the ICPC community, ICPC Chair (Dean Veverka) and Vice Chair (Graham Evans) attended the event in Singapore from 23-24 September 2025. Graham presented to attendees a detailed update regarding ICPC’s outreach activities and special projects.

Centre for International Law Event

From 16-17 September 2025, ICPC’s International Cable Law Adviser Kent Bressie and Executive Committee Member Darren Griffiths participated at the ‘Conference on International Law and the Protection of Submarine Cables and Pipelines: Multi-Dimensional Perspective’ in Singapore.

Darren presented during the session ‘International and Regional Cooperation on The Protection of Submarine Cables and Pipelines’ and Kent was part of the round-table discussion titled ‘Strengthening The Legal Protection for Submarine Cables and Pipelines – The Way Forward.’

The event was organised by NUS Centre for International Law.

European Subsea Cables Association Reception

On 14th July 2025, European Subsea Cables Association (ESCA) held it Summer Reception at the BT Tower in London.

Focusing on Skills, Innovation & Growth, a diverse set of experts gathered to highlight the importance of building talent and capability across the subsea cable sector—from offshore workers to regulators and ocean scientists to policy makers. More than 100 participants from across the cable industry, including government departments, the Royal Navy, universities, and major marine sectors including offshore renewables were in attendance along with collaborators ICPC and SubOptic.

Joint Initiative Statement for Subsea Connectivity Ecosystem Development in Indonesia

On 26th June 2025, a Joint Initiative Statement for Subsea Connectivity Ecosystem Development in Indonesia was signed at the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs’ office in Jakarta with the goal to strengthen digital infrastructure and resilience in Indonesia. Along with several institutions, ICPC united in this commitment recognising critical infrastructure to foster digital talent, economic growth, innovation, enhance social connectivity, and support technological advancement.

SubOptic 2025

From to 2-5 June 2025, representatives from the ICPC participated at SubOptic 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal.

Pictured from left to right: EC Member David Wilkie (IT International Telecom Canda, Inc.); John Wrottesley (ICPC Operations Manager); EC Member Douglas Njenga (WIOCC); Kent Bressie (ICPC International Cable Law Adviser); Ryan Wopshall, (ICPC General Manager); and EC Member Simon Webster (NEC).

ICPC and SubOptic Association MoU

ICPC and SubOptic Association have updated their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in a continued effort to stay coordinated as leading industry organisations in the submarine cable industry. This MoU ensures there is a foundation for collaboration and communication now and into the future and further supports how the industry is represented, particularly with regard to advocating on industry issues to governments, the media, the public, and those within the industry.

Pictured from left to right: ICPC General Manager Ryan Wopschall and SubOptic Association President Paul Gabla.

International Submarine Cable Resilience Summit

On 26th February 2025, ICPC International Cable Law Adviser Kent Bressie presented ‘ICPC and Industry Cable Protection Initiatives’ to a full audience at the inaugural International Submarine Cable Resilience Summit in Abuja, Nigeria. After the presentation, ICPC Operations Manager John Wrottesley then moderated the panel ‘Responding to Disruptions: Crisis Management and Recovery.’

The event was organised by the International Telecommunication Union and ICPC where industry experts gathered together to discuss global digital resilience and connectivity.

Submarine Networks EMEA

On 19th February 2025, ICPC General Manager Ryan Wopschall was part of the panel discussion titled: ‘How does the industry organise itself to protect submarine cables,’ at Submarine Networks EMEA in London, UK. The panel was moderated by ICPC Operations Manager John Wrottesley and joined by ICPC Executive Committee member (Andy Palmer-Felgate), Chairman of European Subsea Cables Association (Steve Dawe), and Secretary of the Danish Cable Protection Committee (Per Andersen).

Launch of Advisory Board

​​​​The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations Agency for Digital Technologies, and ICPC have formed the International Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience to strengthen the resilience of this vital telecommunication infrastructure.

techUK Subsea Cables Summit 2024, London

John Wrottesley, ICPC Operations Manager, attended techUK’s inaugural Subsea Cables Summit, an event focused on policy and regulatory discussions around subsea cables, internet resilience, and the UK’s economic security and what that means for the Tech sector. Key insights were shared on the vital role subsea cables play in connecting the UK and the risks they face. The summit brought together industry experts, operators, vendors, and security stakeholders to discuss this important topic.

Seminar Series

On behalf of the ICPC Executive Committee, Darren Griffiths presented at the 'ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) Seminar Series: Submarine Cables' in Jakarta, Indonesia on 13th February 2025.

WAVEUK 2024, London

The ICPC were proud to sponsor and support the SubOptic WAVE 2024 event, which brought together industry leaders and innovators in the subsea cable sector. Representing the ICPC were EC members Ben Sims (Amazon), Andy Palmer-Felgate (Meta), Mick McGovern (ASN), and Operations Manager John Wrottesley.

The ICPC contributed to the event by supporting panels and roundtable discussions that generated valuable dialogue on key industry topics. The ICPC had a stand, giving the delegates the opportunity to handle submarine cable samples from various eras, giving a tangible connection to the evolution of subsea infrastructure. Additionally, each delegate was given an ICPC umbrella — which were especially well received on a rainy evening in London.

Submarine Networks World

In late September 2024, ICPC Chair Graham Evans provided an update on the organisation’s latest activities, outreach, and project initiatives to delegates at Submarine Networks World in Singapore.

ESCA Plenary

ICPC Executive Committee Member Steve Holden presented an update to delegates attending day one of the European Subsea Cables Association's (ESCA) #62 Plenary session that was held in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands from 18th – 19th September 2024.

Submarine Networks EMEA 2024

As an Association Partner for Submarine Networks EMEA in May 2024, ICPC participated in many panels along with a spotlight presentation on the ICPC itself, where EC Member company Global Marine (represented by Steve Holden) provided an update on ICPC’s activities and outreach.

2024 Law of the Sea Workshop

On Friday 3 May 2024, the ICPC and CIL organised a one-day closed-door workshop to discuss contemporary law and policy issues relating to the laying, repair and protection of submarine telecommunication cables.

2024 ICPC Plenary Meeting, Singapore

The ICPC held the 2024 Plenary in Singapore with the theme of 'Ensuring a Connected Future.' The last plenary held in Singapore back in 2011 hosted about 90 attendees, while this year's plenary hosted over 200 attendees.

United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM) International Seminar

From 4th – 8th March 2024, Graham Evans ICPC Chair and Chair of the Charting Working Group was invited to speak at the Plenary session of the UN-GGIM International Seminar in Bali, Indonesia. It was organised by the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management; International Hydrographic Organization (IHO); Geospatial Information Agency of Indonesia (BIG); Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and Indonesia’s Navy's Hydro-oceanographic Centre (Pushidrosal).

Subsea Communications Cables as Critical Infrastructure

On 5th March 2024, ICPC’s law adviser Kent Bressie, participated in ‘Subsea Communications Cables as Critical Infrastructure.’ The hybrid event was hosted by the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, and co-organised with the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations, along with the ICPC.