Rethinking how we understand subsea cable risk

Drawing on his experience monitoring cable behaviour in real-world offshore environments, Dr Chris Minto, of Indeximate, shares his insights into why cable failure remains the industry's most expensive and persistent risk - and what the insurance community needs to understand about the forces shaping this challenge

In the UK alone, premature cable failures have cost the offshore wind industry an estimated £3.5 billion in lost revenue in the past 15 years. The capital costs of a single export cable repair can exceed £6 million, with downtime adding tens of millions more in revenue losses, especially if operators are not prepared for failure. Cable failures now account for as much as 80 per cent of all insurance claims in the sector.