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On 22-24 April 2026, the second multi-stakeholder Symposium on Subsea Cable Security and Resilience will be held at Valentia Island’s historic Transatlantic Cable Station. Under the umbrella topic “Repair: Past, Present and Future”, the 2026 Valentia Island Symposium aims to contribute to ongoing discussions at national, regional and international levels on the repair of subsea telecommunications cables.
A robust and reliable subsea cable repair ecosystem is essential to safeguarding the security and resilience of critical undersea infrastructure. Recent policy initiatives—including the EU Joint Communication on strengthening submarine cable security and resilience (21 February 2025) and the New York Statement on Undersea Cable Security and Resilience (26 September 2024)—highlight the central role of repair capabilities, including ships, personnel, depots, and enabling policies, in ensuring effective response. Sustaining uninterrupted connectivity is not only vital for national security but also for broader societal resilience. However, both government and industry have flagged significant challenges within the repair ecosystem that demand urgent attention.
Taking a broad historical lens, the Symposium will focus on the evolution of subsea cable repair throughout history, differentiating between repair operations in peacetime, in crisis and during conflict. It will examine repair as a core element of resilience in global connectivity and how this is reflected in current policy and practice. It will discuss some of the key challenges identified by government and industry and pathways for addressing them. Importantly, it will also reflect on current market dynamics and structural shifts in the subsea cable sector. Alongside technological and geopolitical developments, it will examine what these structural shifts mean for the future of repair and the repair ecosystem.
As part of the Symposium, the organisers will issue a Call for Presentations (CfP) in Q4 2025. The CfP, too, will be centred on the Past, Present and Future of Repair. It will also be multi-disciplinary and organised under the following guiding themes:
PAST: From Grapnels to …. Grapnels? The Evolution of Subsea Cable Repair
PRESENT: Maintaining the Backbone in Peacetime, Crisis and Conflict: Repair as a Core Element of Security and Resilience in Global Connectivity
FUTURE: Shifting Tides: The Future of Repair
The organisers will seek presentations from academia and industry spanning different technical and policy areas relevant to repair, including engineering, computer science, innovation, operations and maintenance, law and regulation, international relations and security and strategic studies. Successful submissions will be invited to present their paper on the first day of the Symposium. Additionally, in conjunction with Munster Technology University (MTU) and the National Mariime College Ireland (NMCI), the organisers also plan to run a student competition focused on the topic of repair, the winner(s) of which will be invited to present their project at the Symposium.
The first day of the Symposium will be run hybrid in format commencing with a curated online introductory session on the topic of repair. The remaining 1.5 days of the Workshop will be in- person and conducted under the Chatham House Rule.
Attendance will be by invite only. For further information please contact info@valentiacable.com
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