Subsea Expo, the world’s leading exhibition and conference dedicated to the underwater industry, returns to Aberdeen this week featuring a packed conference programme.

Organised by Global Underwater Hub, Subsea Expo gets underway on Tuesday morning (20 February). Alongside an arena with more than 150 exhibiting companies and organisations, over 80 speakers will present across 13 conference sessions. The free-to-attend event at P&J Live in Aberdeen runs until Thursday afternoon and is expected to welcome around 6,000 visitors.

The three-day event will open with a plenary session that will include an address from Vicky Dawe, director of energy development at the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. Chaired by Global Underwater Hub chief executive Neil Gordon, the plenary session will explore the market challenges, cross-sector innovations and opportunities that exist in the blue economy. 

Joining Mr Gordon on Tuesday morning will be four leaders from across the underwater industry, including Jenny Shaw, chief executive officer of cable system manufacturer Scientific Management International and Beena Sharma, chief executive officer and co-founder of carbon capture technology firm CCU International. Also on the panel will be Sean Wolpert, president of DEEP, which aims to build an aquatic world habitable by humans and Ian Douglas, chief executive officer of XLCC that plans to build a subsea cable manufacturing facility at Hunterston in North Ayrshire.

Conference sessions on Tuesday afternoon will explore market demand in the energy transition, the application of digital technology in the subsea sector and the development and commercialisation of new technologies.

Wednesday’s conference programme commences with sessions on hydrogen and carbon capture, utilisation and storage, decommissioning and the circular economy and surveying the seabed.  In the afternoon, the focus turns to the subsea opportunities in floating offshore wind, the life cycle of underwater pipelines from design to decommissioning, and the defence and security of critical underwater infrastructure.

Three sessions on Thursday morning will conclude conference proceedings. These will focus on ROV technology and handling, the challenges and opportunities that exist in the underwater market, and inspection technologies and processes for maintaining the integrity of subsea infrastructure.

The exhibition arena will showcase the latest technologies and innovative products from across the underwater industry.  New for 2024 is the offshore wind developer zone featuring companies that are building wind farms off the UK coast.

Neil Gordon, chief executive of Global Underwater Hub, said:
“We have a very strong conference programme for Subsea Expo 2024 with a broad range of subjects being discussed, and delivered by a knowledgeable and respected line-up of speakers.  Combined with the busy exhibition arena, this week’s Subsea Expo will offer visitors lots of learning and networking opportunities.

“This year’s theme, Navigating the Blue Frontier, runs through the entire conference programme.  From exploring new technologies, developments in CCUS and hydrogen, and discussions around decommissioning, floating offshore wind, subsea inspection technologies and defence, the multi-stream conference illustrates the breadth of underwater opportunity available in the blue economy.”

Subsea Expo 2024 gets underway at 09:30 on Tuesday, 20 February, with the exhibition remaining open until 17:30.  Pre-registration online is advised at www.subseaexpo.com, where full event information can be found.

KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: Global Underwater Hub   l   KeyFacts Energy news: Aberdeen Focus