EstLink 2 Cable to Return to Service as Criminal Investigation is Finished
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Media reports from Finland are indicating that police investigators have completed the examination of the incident in which a shadow fleet tanker is suspected of dragging its anchor and damaging critical undersea infrastructure. This comes as the cable operator reported that it will be able to restore commercial service at the end of the month.<\/p>\n
A subsea power cable connecting Finland and Estonia went dark on Christmas Day 2024 along with damage to other communications cables. The authorities suspected a shadow fleet product tanker Eagle S<\/em> that was operating in the Russian oil trade. The Cook Islands-flagged vessel was missing one of its anchors which was later retrieved from the seabed along with the reports that teams found indications that the anchor was dragged along the seabed for over 100 kilometers, severing the power link and four undersea telecommunications cables.<\/p>\n Fingrid and Elering announced last week that repair work on EstLink 2 is progressing faster than planned and that the electricity interconnector will return to commercial use on June 25, about three weeks ahead of the originally anticipated mid-July date. The section of the cable that was damaged has successfully been cut out, with about a one-kilometer-long spare cable being used to connect the undamaged sections. The works are being aided by favorable sea conditions.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBoth the preparatory and repair works have progressed well, and there have been no setbacks. The construction of the first repair joint will be completed today (May 30), and construction of the second will begin next week,\u201d said Reigo Haug, head of Estlink operations.<\/p>\n