The Undersea Cable Community Convened in Montevideo for ICPC Plenary

The 50th International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) Plenary session that was held in Montevideo, Uruguay, from 25-27 April 2017.

ICPC Members from around the globe contributed to a successful annual Plenary with the theme of unmissable insights and challenges related to submarine cable planning, installation, protection, and maintenance. Attendees gained insight from the Plenary highlights, which included talks and expert panel sessions on a wide range of highly relevant topics.

Minister Carolina Cosse, Minister of Industries, Energy and Mining for Uruguay, welcomed ICPC Members to Uruguay in her opening keynote speech. In her address, Minister Cosse highlighted the many social and economic projects Uruguay is undertaking to make it the number one country to do business in South America.

Another highly respected invited guest, Professor Kristina Gjerde, from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, discussed how the cable laying community might also be able to contribute to Ocean Management through observation of the Global Ocean Depths. Additionally, among the multitude of informative lectures, two highly-engaging topics were presented—one covering environmental change in the Arctic Ocean and a second concerning the uncertainties and issues relating to the future of US Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), specifically, recently created Marine National Monuments. Coincidently, the latter topic was the subject of an Executive Order issued by US President Trump for the Secretary of the Interior to review all National Monuments formed over the last two decades.

Delegates also gained insight from a broad range of viewpoints including legal, technological and geological factors—all critical to better understanding the uniqueness of submarine cable deployments. One of the most significant benefits of these annual gatherings is the opportunity to listen to not only the crucial information disseminated to the ICPC’s Members, but also the critically important opportunity to engage in face-to-face lively discussions to constantly improve the ICPC’s goal to share the seabed in harmony with others. Taken together, this is precisely what made ICPC’s 50th Plenary such a well-attended and great success.

The ICPC’s Chairman, Mr. Graham Evans, announced that the next ICPC Plenary will take place in iconic Cape Town, South Africa from 10-12th April 2018. Mr. Evans issued the following invitation: “The ICPC welcomes all members to gather in Cape Town to celebrate 60 years of protecting and sharing the seabed in harmony with others, by sharing information and collaborating on multiple initiatives”.

After three full days of insightful presentations, interactive panels of experts, high profile invited guests, gracious hosts, and industry exhibitors, attendees headed home equipped with improved knowledge and the benefit of shared experience to help them better protect the seabed and the subsea cables that lay upon it.

To learn more about what transpired each day during the 2017 Plenary, visit the Plenary highlights page.