Shipping companies using the Baltic Sea, one of the world’s busiest maritime routes, may face a new fee to help finance the

Globally, around 150 undersea cables are damaged each year, according to the UK-based International Cable Protection Committee. The telecoms cables, power lines and gas pipes in t

Shipping firms may need to pay a tax to use the Baltic Sea to fund costly protection for underwater cables, says Estonia’s defence minister. Hanno Pevkur said the move may be needed after a series of incidents where vessels allegedly linked to Russia’s “shadow fleet” have damaged power and communications cables with their anchors in acts of suspected sabotage by Vladimir Putin ’s regime.

Estonia’s defence minister proposed on Wednesday that shipping companies may have to pay a fee to use the Baltic Sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, to cover the high costs of protecting undersea cables following a series of breaches,