A subsea cable connecting Latvia to Sweden’s Gotland island is the latest cable to be damaged in the Baltic Sea.
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Owned by Latvia’s State Radio and Television Centre (LVRTC), the cable’s Ventspils–Gotland segment was damaged at depths of 100m.
The Latvian government has suggested in a statement that the cable was damaged due to ‘external factors.’
Early on January 26th, the submarine optical fiber cable in the Baltic Sea belonging to SJSC Latvia State Radio and Television Center (hereinafter – LVRTC) was damaged.
LVRTC’s Data Transmission Monitoring System detected disruptions in data transmission services on the Ventspils–Gotland (Fårösund) segment.
LVRTC continues to provide services via alternative data transmission routes. Currently, there may be delays in data transmission speeds, but for the most part, this does not impact end users in Latvia.
In cooperation with technological partners, LVRTC immediately conducted system checks and network measurements from equipment in Ventspils.
Based on current findings, it is presumed that the cable is significantly damaged due to external factors. LVRTC has initiated criminal procedural actions.
Given that the cable lies at a depth exceeding 50 meters, the exact nature of the damage can only be determined once cable repair work begins.
LVRTC has informed the responsible authorities about the incident.
According to the information currently available to LVRTC, electronic communication providers who previously used the submarine optical fiber cable have switched to alternative data transmission routes to maintain services.
LVRTC is in discussions with a foreign company that has extensive experience in handling such technologically complex tasks and can technically carry out the submarine cable repair.
Repairs will begin as soon as an agreement is reached regarding the deployment of the repair vessel.
On Sunday, January 26th, Prime Minister Evika Siliņa convened a meeting with the responsible ministries and authorities regarding the disruptions to the optical fiber communication network on the Ventspils–Gotland segment managed by LVRTC.
LVRTC continues to negotiate with the company that will repair the network failure.
Deep-water works are complicated, they are significantly different from the repair of optical cables on land. Deepwater operations are affected by a number of factors, including weather conditions, supply chains and job logistics.
The cable damage location is 130km from the LVRTC facilities in Ventspils. Given the depth of the cable, the exact extent of the damage will only be determined by raising the cable above water or diving near it.
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