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About Global Marine

Global Marine is a leading provider of subsea engineering, responding to the subsea fibre-optic cable installation, maintenance, repairs and burial requirements of our customers globally

Global Marine is part of the Global Marine Group. The company has a legacy of over 170 years in both deep and shallow water operations and operates worldwide with head offices located in Chelmsford, UK and Singapore.

Widely considered as subsea fibre-optic cable experts by the industries we operate in, Global Marine offers comprehensive installation, maintenance and emergency repair solutions to the telecoms  sec.

Global Marine is recognised as a high quality, strategic partner, with a successful track record across the telecommunications industry with many returning customers; a recent key project is BT’s R100 North contract taking place in 2021.

Furthermore, we have developed a core base of knowledge, skills, technology, equipment and assets which provide the capabilities to plan, install, bury, store, test, find, recover and maintain subsea fibre-optic cables.

Owning the world’s largest independent marine contracting fleet, we are in a unique position. Our fleet includes three specialist cable installation vessels, and four repair & maintenance vessels, as well as long-term charter vessels, to effectively execute operations for our global telecoms maintenance zone customers including ACMA and SEAIOCMA.

With depots located strategically around the world, Global Marine is fully equipped to mobilise quickly for a repair operation, miminising project downtime and helping to reduce lost revenue and associated operational costs for our customers.

Additionally, we provide Universal Joint (UJ) training at our specialised UK Head Office facility, providing essential skills for technicians.

Meet Our Team

At Global Marine, our team’s passion for success and their intrinsic knowledge of seabed cables is at the heart of what we do.

Bruce Neilson-Watts

Chief Executive Officer

Bruce Neilson-Watts

Chief Executive Officer


Becoming CEO in 2022, Bruce began his career with Global Marine Group at sea in 1989, becoming a Master Mariner and the youngest ever Captain in the fleet, before coming ashore in 2005.  He then spent time in Asia, working in both HMN and VP Service Delivery, and SBSS as Managing Director.  Returning to the UK in 2014, Bruce has held a number of strategic posts within the business and headed the Global Marine business unit as Managing Director from 2017 until transitioning to the role of CEO.  Bruce also sits on SubOptic’s Executive Committee, and has done so since 2019.

Neil Burns

Managing Director of Asset & Operations

Neil Burns

Managing Director of Asset & Operations


Neil started his career with the Royal Navy and trained as a Marine Engineer serving on Nuclear Submarines, before making the move to the Merchant Navy where he served in a number of companies including Global Marine rising to the rank of Chief Engineer.  Neil came ashore in 2004 as Technical Superintendent, followed by Fleet Manager, Fleet Director and Managing Director across the oil, chemical, offshore and gas industries.

Paul Deslandes

Head of Project Delivery

Paul Deslandes

Head of Project Delivery


Paul heads up the Global Marine Project Delivery Team and has been with the company since 1998. He is highly experienced in key programme and project delivery in compliance with legislative & company standards, polices, and procedures. The projects that have been delivered by Paul and his team vary across the telecoms, renewable energy along with oil & gas sectors. He also contributes to an implementation of improvement programmes within the business as well as being a member of the quality, safety, and environmental committees.

Stephen Holden

Head of Maintenance – EMEA

Stephen Holden

Head of Maintenance – EMEA


With over 40 years’ experience in offshore engineering, Stephen began his career as a Submarine Cable Engineer, gaining vast experience and knowledge about subsea cable infrastructure. A valued member of the Global Marine team for well over a decade, Stephen is responsible for all maintenance customer account issues associated with ACMA and NAZ, including renewal strategy and market/competitor evaluation. Additionally, Stephen assists with SEAIOCMA to meet customer requirements.

Richard Flanders

Head of QHSE/DPA

Richard Flanders

Head of QHSE/DPA


Richard has 20 years experience as a mariner within Global Marine, including as a cable ship commander and DP master.

He now heads up the businesses QHSE department as well as acting as DPA (Designated Person Ashore)


Our Captains

Gary Buller

Ship Captain

Gary Buller

Ship Captain


Captain Gary Buller began his career as a deck-hand, and in 1989 joined the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), from there Gary started his career with Global Marine Group in 2008.

Gary’s career journey with Global Marine began on board the Wave Sentinel in 2008. Throughout his time working at Global Marine, Gary has established an extensive track-record, working on telecommunications installation and maintenance projects as well as oil & gas connectivity operations globally.

Gary is currently a Master on board the CS Recorder, a DP2 vessel specialising in fibre optic cable installation.

Bill Ellis

Ship Captain

Bill Ellis

Ship Captain


Bill began his career offshore in 1968 and subsequently joined the cable ship industry in 1975. Since this time, Bill has been involved in numerous cable operations across the globe including the Atlantic, Pacific and Southeast Asian Oceans.

Bill is experienced in both shallow and deep water operations and has an extensive track record of successfully completing cable repair projects for customers world wide.

For the past three years, Bill has been the Master of Cable Retriever, Global Marine’s cable maintenance vessel located in the Philippines, serving the SEAIOCMA zone.

Paul Haines

Ship Captain

Paul Haines

Ship Captain


Paul Haines joined Global Marine when it was Cable & Wireless, as a deck cadet, and has worked onboard all of the company’s installation and maintenance vessels. In 2006, Paul was involved with the DP2 conversion onboard the C.S. Sovereign, and since then has been the continuity Senior DPO/Chief Mate/Master for wind farm burials and inter-array installations, renewable energy projects and telecoms cable installations.

Alex Jackson

Ship Captain

Alex Jackson

Ship Captain


Alex, who originally joined Cable & Wireless in 1997, was promoted in 2019 to the role of Master after spending the last nine years working as Chief Mate. His career has grown with the company as he has progressed from third officer, to second officer to Chief Officer and now to Master. In that time he has worked has worked on multiple ACMA & NAZ repairs.

Richard Kearns

Ship Captain/OIM

Richard Kearns

Ship Captain/OIM


Since joining Global Marine, Richard has been involved in numerous cable repairs, cable installations, offshore renewable energy and oil & gas projects. He has also spent a year seconded to the company’s Portland Depot in Dorset, as a deck superintendent. More recently, Richard has worked as the continuity commander of Wave Sentinel based in Portland on the Atlantic Cable Maintenance Agreement involved in numerous shallow and deep water cable repairs.

Chris Neave

Ship Captain/OIM

Chris Neave

Ship Captain/OIM


Captain Chris Neave started his career as a deck cadet in the Merchant Navy in 1973 before joining Global Marine in 1987. Throughout his service, Chris has been involved in repairs and installations of all kinds world-wide including telecoms, power and scientific research cables in the North Sea, Irish Sea, Mediterranean, Gulf of Guinea, Brazil, Trinidad, Canada, Suriname, Venezuela and more.

Derek Smith

Ship Captain/OIM

Derek Smith

Ship Captain/OIM


Captain Derek Smith started his sea-going career in 1994 as a deck cadet and joined Global Marine just a few years later in 1998. Since then he has sailed as third officer, second officer, chief officer, offshore installation manager and most recently commander. Throughout his career with Global Marine he has been involved in many large cable installations, cable system repairs, deep water salvage operations and renewable projects. He has also spent time in the company head office in Chelmsford working in the solutions design department planning future cable installations.

John Tollady

Ship Captain

John Tollady

Ship Captain


Captain Tollady joined the company as a Third Officer in 1983. His first command was ten years later in 1993. During 32 years of service he has undertaken every aspect of marine operations, from working in company offices around the world, to transoceanic installations, cable repairs, route surveys as well as oil, gas and renewables projects.

Kevin Widdowson

Ship Captain

Kevin Widdowson

Ship Captain


Captain Kevin Widdowson began his cable ship career in 1989, and spent his early years engaged in major Installation work around the Far East and North Pacific Region. A move towards the maintenance side of the business in 2012 has brought about a mix of deep and shallow water repairs, in and around the Pacific & Caribbean, where Kevin’s project management experience and skills as a beach master have been particularly useful. With a thirst for offshore adventure, Kevin was part of a dedicated team that smashed the world powerboat record for circumnavigation of the globe a memorable journey of almost 73 days.

INDUSTRY PARTNERS AND MEMBERS

The strength of our longstanding partnerships ensures that we bring a consistent and continual engineering service capability to our customers.

Rovco Ocean Insight

Through our invested partnership with Rovco, the world’s leading provider of ROV and hydrographic surveys using 3D and AI, Global Marine Group provide advancements to the offshore renewables and oil & gas industries through the continuous improvement of available and future-proofed digital technology.

Our invested partnership minimises risk to offshore personnel, through smarter ways of working, reducing the amount of time spent offshore.

S B Submarine Systems (SBSS)

SBSS is a joint venture established in 1995 with China Telecom, based in Shanghai, offering installation capability to both telecoms and oil & gas. Customers include Yokohama cable maintenance zone. More information >

International Cableship Pte Ltd (ICPL)

ICPL is a joint venture to support the activities of the South East Asia Indian Ocean Cable Maintenance Agreement (SEAIOCMA). Activities include with repair, reinstatement and preventative maintenance of scheduled cables.