Deepwater Positioning

USVs Secure Offshore Oil and Gas Infrastructure

While much of the “buzz” regarding America’s increased energy production has focused on onshore fracking, which has opened up billions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of natural gas to production, the offshore oil and gas industry continued to provide a huge amount of the U.S. energy production. According to Forbes Magazine, offshore energy production has been increasing this decade and now stands at over two-and-one-half million barrels of oil, and almost three trillion cubic feet of gas a day.This massive production effort is sustained by offshore drilling rigs

NNHO Expands Bathymetric Capabilities

Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office establishes new bathymetric capabilities with CARIS softwareThe Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office (NNHO) has selected Teledyne CARIS to provide solutions for both current and future national and international charting requirements. Equipped with CARIS Ping-to-Chart technology, the NNHO is establishing new capabilities for bathymetric analysis, and completion of hydrographic and other geospatial data. These tools will ensure an efficient workflow for the production of electronic charts and paper charts according to both the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO)

EdgeTech Delivers ERB for Deewater Acoustic Release Mooring Recovery

EdgeTech, a provider of high resolution sonar imaging systems, acoustic release systems and underwater technology, said it recently delivered an innovative solution for deepwater acoustic release mooring recovery.The Emergency Recovery Beacon (ERB) is a self-contained, programable acoustic command transmitter and transponder in a 6,000 meter rated nickel aluminium bronze alloy housing that can be lowered from the side of a vessel below any surface noise, shipboard noise or thermoclines.The ERB is programmed through a serial port using a computer running a terminal program and can transmit EdgeTech LF

Seacor Marine Acquires Three Cosco PSVs

The offshore marine support vessels operator Seacor Marine Holdings announced it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire three platform supply vessels (PSVs) from Cosco Shipping Heavy Industry, an affiliate of Cosco Shipping Group, the world’s largest ship owner.Aggregate consideration for the vessels will be approximately $46 million, of which 30% will be paid in cash and 70% will be paid under a four-year deferred payment agreement between Seacor   Marine and Cosco Zhoushan.Half of the cash payment will be funded in the first quarter of 2019 with the balance per vessel to be

IUEM Chooses iXblue Equipment

Navigation, positioning and underwater imaging solutions provider iXblue said it has been chosen by the European Institute for Marine Studies (IUEM) to provide 8 Canopus long baseline (LBL) transponders for a geodetic mission off the coast of Sicily. Deployed on the seabed, 2,500 meters below the surface, the Canopus transponders will measure the crustal deformation along the North-South Alfeo faults with a millimeter-scale resolution over the course of four years.Hubert Pelletier, Head of iXblue Acoustic division, said, “Because the Canopus transponders precisely meet the exacting requirements

LLOG Exploration Reports Deepwater Exploratory Discovery

The  deepwater exploration company operating primarily in the Gulf of Mexico  reported the drilling of a successful discovery on its Nearly Headless Nick exploratory prospect on Mississippi Canyon Block 387 in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.Louisiana-based company said that it has drilled  successful  discovery  on  LLOG’s  exploratory  prospect,  Nearly  Headless  Nick,  in Mississippi  Canyon  387Brought  online  five  new  fields  in  2018,  of  which  four  initiated  prod

Crude & Fuel Outlook: Fund Managers Neutral

Hedge fund managers show signs of having completed their recent sale of crude and refined fuels, with positions edging up slightly in the first week of the new year, amid hopes a recession can be averted.Oil prices have bounced off their recent lows, the U.S. dollar has weakened against most other major currencies and expectations of a trade deal between the United States and China are rising.Portfolio managers raised their net long position in ICE Brent crude futures and options by 6 million barrels to 158 million barrels in the week to Jan. 8.Funds also boosted their net long position in European

Gardline Names Vermeijden CEO

Marine survey company Gardline has appointed Christiaan Vermeijden as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Vermeijden will replace Gardline's current interim CEO, Gerben Eggink.Vermeijden joins the U.K. based Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. subsidiary after leaving his position as CEO at Norway-based Electromagnetic Geoservices ASA (EMGS). Prior to his role with EMGS, he was part of the Executive Management Team and Global Offshore Geotechnical Director at Fugro N.V.He holds a Master of Science (MSc) degree in Physical Geography from the University of Amsterdam and a Master of Business

Jan de Nul Completes Umbilical Installation Offshore Egypt

Marine engineering firm Jan De Nul Group Jan De Nul Group has completed the installation and burial of the two main subsea umbilicals for the exploitation of new gas fields in the West Nile Delta concessions, located in the North Alexandria region, offshore Egypt.According to the company release, specifically for this project, Jan De Nul Group reconfigured its multi-purpose vessel Willem de Vlamingh into an efficient Umbilical Installation Vessel.The two umbilicals, with a total length of 69 km, were loaded in Norway in May 2018 and transported to Egypt. The installation campaign started with a 3-km

iXblue Partners with Forssea

iXblue, a designer and manufacturer of advanced navigation, imagery and subsea positioning solutions, said it has joined forces with Forssea, a robotics startup that develops autonomous docking underwater technologies, to bring more agile and cost-effective subsea operations.Combining Forssea’s Atoll, an observation-class remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) that offers autonomous docking capabilities, with iXblue’s DriX offshore going unmanned surface vessel (USV) and its Gaps ultra-short baseline (USBL) embedded gondola, both companies are now offering a new method of long baseline

Forum Unveils New eROV

Forum Subsea Technologies' recently launched XLe Spirit is the first observation-class electric remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to utilize Forum’s Integrated Control Engine (ICE) to bring greater functionality commonly only found in larger work-class vehicles.According to the manufacturer, the advanced control electronics pod fitted to all Forum XLe observation class vehicles enables superior connectivity and expansion capabilities. Ethernet interfacing allows for seamless integration with other industry sensors using common IP architecture and ease of remote data transfer.Kevin Taylor

Ørsted Tapped for Connecticut Offshore Wind Farm

Denmark based Ørsted has been selected by Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to move forward to negotiate a fixed-price power purchase agreement (PPA) with the state’s power distribution companies for 0.42TWh (terawatt hours) per year equivalent to 100MW offshore wind capacity.  Subject to contract signing and Ørsted’s final investment decision (FID), construction on the Revolution Wind project is expected to start in 2022, and the wind farm is expected to be commissioned in 2023.With the 100MW added capacity, Revolution Wind has now

Boskalis Buys BoDo's Cable Lay Business

Dutch dredging and offshore contractor Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. announced Friday it has reached a deal with Geramny-based SPIE to acquire the offshore cable installation activities and assets of Bohlen Doyen GmbH (BoDo).BoDo's operations include grid to grid and offshore substation to shore connections, which includes the installation of nearshore and offshore cables and the connection of offshore wind farms to substations. Its offshore activities generate an annual turnover of EUR 20-30 million.The scope of the transaction, to be financed from Boskalis' cash flow, includes the acquisitio

New Research on Gulf of Mexico Loop Current

More than $10 million in grant funding has been awarded for a group of new projects that aim to fill research gaps in order to help improve understanding and prediction of the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current System (LCS).As the Gulf of Mexico's dominant ocean circulation feature, the LCS has far-reaching implications for a wide range of human and natural systems, including oil and gas operations, yet knowledge about the underlying dynamics that control its behavior is limited.Following recommendations from a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) report released earlier this

3D at Depth Expands

Subsea laser LiDAR (SL) technology and 3D data visualization solutions specialist 3D at Depth said it has expanded several global office locations and launched a new portfolio of services designed to support cohesive workflow efficiencies for offshore oil field design through decommissioning. The new line includes: terrestrial dimensional control to support subsea data collection workflows; subsea tooling design solutions; remote sensing, and real-time LiDAR data collection. These new services will compliment 3D at Depth's existing portfolio of solutions and deliver additional 3D insight to measure

Mancuso Joins Teledyne Marine

Carl Mancuso has joined Teledyne Marine as the Director of Product Line Management for Teledyne Benthos, which consists of acoustic modems / positioning products, flotation, releases, pinger locators, and deep tow systems.Mancuso comes to Teledyne from Falmouth Scientific Inc. (FSI), where he served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the past eight years. He brings with him a keen understanding of the oceanographic community, and a strong familiarity with Teledyne’s products. Prior to FSI, Mancuso worked in various capacities at Boston Dynamics, American Research Institute, Philips

BOEM "Blown Away" by Record U.S. Offshore Wind Auction

 A U.S. government auction for three wind leases off the coast of Massachusetts ended on Friday with record-setting bids totaling more than $400 million from European energy giants including Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Equinor ASA.The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the sale's three winners - Equinor Wind US LLC, Mayflower Wind Energy LLC, and Vineyard Wind LLC, at the conclusion of the two-day sale that attracted 11 bidders and lasted 32 rounds.Mayflower is a joint venture owned by Shell and EDP Renewables, a division of Portugal's EDP. Vineyard Wind is a joint venture

Europeans Sweep Record US Offshore Wind Auction

A U.S. government auction for three wind leases off the coast of Massachusetts ended on Friday with record-setting bids totaling more than $400 million from European energy giants including Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Equinor ASA.The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the sale's three winners - Equinor Wind US LLC, Mayflower Wind Energy LLC, and Vineyard Wind LLC, at the conclusion of the two-day sale that attracted 11 bidders and lasted 32 rounds.Mayflower is a joint venture owned by Shell and EDP Renewables, a division of Portugal's EDP. Vineyard Wind is a joint venture between

Acteon Acquires Deepwater Corrosion Services

Acteon Group Ltd has acquired subsea corrosion specialist Deepwater Corrosion Services Inc. in a move to strengthen the group's ability to help customers manage the integrity of subsea infrastructure throughout the life of a field.Deepwater has designed, built and installed more offshore cathodic protection systems than any other company and provides corrosion investigation and subsea inspection services. It operates from facilities in the U.S., the U.K., Brazil, Norway and Australia.Acteon said the acquisition broadens its technical knowledge of corrosion engineering, problem solving and retrofit

New F180 Lightweight Pre-Calibrated System

CodaOctopus unveiled a new F180 Lightweight Pre-Calibrated Housing designed for those who require a simpler, faster, more flexible solution for accurate marine positioning. This waterproof housing for the F180 and F180R series of GNSS aided inertial positioning devices fully integrates with CodaOctopus MOTION control to provide precise IMU to Antenna alignment without the need for calibration.This latest model is 25 percent smaller, more than 20 pecent lighter, and competitively priced, allowing customers to integrate their system faster and in more flexible ways than before, the manufacturer said.

UTEC Wins Survey Work Offshore India

Surveying company UTEC, part of subsea services group Acteon, said it has been awarded a subcontract by McDermott International for a series of survey work scopes offshore eastern India.The work, due to commence in December 2018, will see UTEC provide surface and subsea positioning services during the installation of subsea flowlines, pipeline end manifolds and terminations, jumpers, risers and umbilicals that form part of the development of a field in water depths to 2,100 meters.UTEC said it will operate equipment and personnel initially on three vessels: the McDermott operated DLV 2000 pipelay

Admiral Tim Lowe to Head UK Hydrographic Office

replacement is sought for John Humphrey, the current Chief Executive and Accounting Officer of the UKHO, who will leave at the end of January 2019.Rear Admiral Lowe said: “I look forward to taking the helm as Acting Chief Executive, whilst we continue to transform the UKHO into a world-leading marine geospatial information agency. It is an exciting time for our team as we transition to a data centric, digital first organisation whilst continuing to deliver on our wide spectrum of responsibilities, including our obligations to support safe passage in UK waters, provide hydrographic services to

UK Hydrographic Office Taps Lowe as Chief Executive

and Accounting Officer of the UKHO, who will leave at the end of January 2019.Lowe is a Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy and joined the UKHO as UK National Hydrographer and Deputy Chief Executive in 2015. In his role, he has led a number of key projects for the UKHO. This includes the Commonwealth Marine Economies and Overseas Territories Seabed Mapping programs to support the development of blue economies in territories across the world.The Minister with responsibility for the UKHO Earl Howe, Minister of State for Defence, said: “I would like to thank John for his leadership as CE of the UKHO

Ocean Power Technologies Pact with NEC Energy Solutions

The provider of ocean energy solutions Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) signed a letter of intent to enter into a long-term supply agreement with NEC Energy Solutions, global leader in utility scale energy storage.Under the terms of the supply agreement, NEC ES will supply lithium ion batteries for OPT's subsea battery solutions.George H. Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT, said: "NEC is a supplier of lithium ion batteries for our subsea battery solutions. Their long-standing leadership in the industry, as well as their dedication towards providing versatile, high-quality

Kongsberg Unveils HUGIN SUPERIOR AUV

, increasing productive survey time and contributing to reduced OPEX.“The new HUGIN SUPERIOR AUV System is available alongside the existing HUGIN and MUNIN AUV Systems, expanding our product portfolio to cover all market segments and performance requirements,” said Richard Mills, Director, Marine Robotics Sales, Kongsberg Maritime. “Our new flagship AUV is designed to deliver superior data, positioning and mission endurance, enabling users to do more with a single asset than ever before.“Ultimately, it can generate much more data for less operational expenditure, all while offering

Seatools Unveils New Deepwater Excavator

Subsea technology company Seatools has introduced the Carrera E 3D motion-controlled precision flow excavation spread. The 630+ kW, all-electric deepwater excavator features Seatools’ advanced ROV DP technology and sets the stage for better accuracy, production and workability in the mass flow excavation (MFE).Seatools developed the Carrera E mass flow excavation spread leveraging its capabilities in heave compensation and ROV control technologies. The patent-pending spread features 3D motion control, which enables precision excavation operations at a minimum of seabed disturbance. Thanks to the

MMT: Image Processing in Focus

Since the launch of its Surveyor ROV as primary tool of inspection and survey through the production of High-Resolution imagery, marine surveying firm MMT said it has taken another step forward.In a long-term collaboration, of more than a decade, between industry and academic research, MMT and Reach have conducted deep sea (up to 2,200 meters deep) high resolution photogrammetric surveys of more than sixty historically important shipwrecks in the Bulgarian Black Sea between 2016 and 2017.The Black Sea Maritime Archaeology Project (Black Sea MAP), funded by the Julia and Hans Rausing Trust and led by

Eriksen Joins Kreuz Subsea Board

Global integrated subsea services business Kreuz Subsea has appointed Knut Eriksen as the board’s first independent nonexecutive director. Eriksen, who took up the advisory position on December 1, will support the business on a strategic level and help to identify future growth opportunities.Eriksen has worked for more than 35 years in the oil and gas sector around the world, having worked for the past two decades in senior management roles, including president of engineering at Aker Maritime and senior VP roles at Oceaneering International and NATCO Group, focusing on operations and business

Vestdavit to Equip Nexans Cable Layer

Bergen-based Vestdavit said has secured a contract to equip the Nexans flag ship cable layer Nexans Aurora with its MissionEase multi-boat handling system for mission bays.The cable laying vessel (CLV) has been designed by Skipsteknisk in Ålesund and will be constructed by Norwegian yard Ulstein Verft. At 149.9m in length, 31m width and with capacity to accommodate 90 personnel, she will perform power cable laying, cable system protection and trenching, and be capable of high maneuverability and DP3 station-keeping capabilities.Rather than using overhead cranes within the mission bay, MissionEase

i-Tech Services Wins IMR Contract

i-Tech Services said it has secured its first inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM) contract for the vessel MMA Pinnacle with a Malaysia-based integrated oil and gas services company, following the signing of a long-term vessel charter agreement in the Asia Pacific region earlier this year.The work scope for the 30-day campaign ranges from the provision of general visual inspection (GVI) services through to changing out subsea hardware in water depths of 1,400 meters, using the vessel’s 150-metric-ton crane.Mobilizing in Singapore, the MMA Pinnacle has been fitted with a range of i-Tech

Sonardyne Unveils Fusion 2

Underwater positioning and navigation specialist Sonardyne International Ltd. has launched a new integrated acoustic and inertial positioning platform for marine survey contractors and offshore construction companies.Available from today, Sonardyne’s Fusion 2 Long BaseLine (LBL) and Inertial Navigation System (INS) software has been written from the ground up to offer a single solution aiming to make field development projects faster and easier. With Fusion 2, the separate software applications, vessel-fit hardware and often complex communication interfaces that have been typically required to

Sonardyne Leads AUV Collaboration Project

provider of underwater acoustic, inertial, optical and sonar technology said in a release that with partners L3 ASV and the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), Sonardyne will focus on longer-term navigational accuracy for AUVs in deep water, while reducing power requirements and increasing autonomy in marine operations.The P3AUV project will involve trials using Sonardyne’s leading underwater positioning technology on the NOC’s Autosub Long Range (ALR) and L3 ASV’s C-Worker 7 autonomous surface vehicle (ASV). The project, which will include trials in Loch Ness next month, is due to

Sonar Helps Find Missing Argentine Submarine

EdgeTech, a manufacturer of high-resolution sonar imaging systems and underwater technology, said its side scan sonar technology was used to help find the missing Argentine submarine, ARA San Juan, which was recently located in 900 meters of water off Argentina's Atlantic Coast after a yearlong search.The deepwater search was performed by Ocean Infinity and its advanced fleet of 6,000 meter rated autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV) equipped with EdgeTech 2205 Side Scan Sonars. The ARA San Juan was imaged by the EdgeTech sonar operating at a frequency of 230kHz and a 400-meter range scale.EdgeTech&r

China Plumbs Ocean Depths for Cobalt

up its balance sheet. It was not immediately available for further comment.While Nautilus wants to mine Papua New Guinea's territorial waters, international waters are regulated by the International Seabed Authority (ISA), an agency set up by the United Nations to manage the seabed and protect the marine environment.China, is in pole position in international waters as the holder of four of the 29 deep sea ISA exploration contracts granted so far, more than any other nation.Along with Glencore, the country already dominates world cobalt supplies, mostly from the politically volatile Democratic Republic

Subsea Vision & Photogrammetry Lab Formed

Offshore robotics company FORSSEA ROBOTICS chose GMS as main technical partner to certify its real-time visual positioning technologies. A joint laboratory will be created to develop a common offer covering camera calibration, subsea image treatment and innovative photogrammetry solutions.FORSSEA ROBOTICS decided last year to adapt its Atoll ROV embedded visual docking technology into a stand-alone product. The company was already manufacturing and commercializing underwater cameras, mainly for R&D underwater vision applications.The so-called V-LOC (Visual LOCalization) technology has been designed

Oil Removed from WWII Era Shipwreck

A U.S. Navy led team has removed 229,000 gallons of oil from a sunken World War II era German heavy cruiser that has been resting on the seafloor near the Marshall Islands for more than 70 years.After being transferred to the U.S. as a war prize, the cruiser Prinz Eugen was loaded with oil and cargo and used to assess survivability of warships during the Operation Crossroads atomic bomb tests in the Pacific. The ship survived two atomic blasts before being towed to Kwajalein Atoll, where it capsized and sunk in December 1946.Now, 72 years later, a project team led by Stephanie Bocek of the Navy's

Artificial Intelligence Aids Subsea Object Detection

A developer of real-time 3D sonar technology and real-time subsea intelligence has launched a new product that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to automatically detect and recognize distinct underwater objects.Coda Octopus announced Tuesday that it is launching the initial product of its AI-based Automatic Object Detection (AOD) software product series, the Survey Engine Automatic Object Detection Package (SEADP), which enables geophysicists to automatically accomplish the previously painstaking and costly task of manually sifting through data to identify, tag and report on boulders within a seabed

US warns sanctions still an option against Nord Stream 2

The United States could yet impose new sanctions to try to block construction of the Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea to the European Union, the U.S. ambassador to the EU said on Tuesday.Asked if Donald Trump could take further measures to thwart a project which the president has said would leave EU countries even more beholden to Moscow for their energy, Gordon Sondland said: "We have not deployed the full set of tools yet that could significantly undermine if not outright stop the project."Addressing an audience at the European Policy Centre think-tank in Brussels

Ørsted Concludes Deepwater Wind Acquisition

Danish wind energy giant Orsted completed its previously announced takeover of Deepwater Wind from D.E. Shaw group in a deal valued at $510 million.The company closed the transaction of acquiring 100% of equity stake held by D.E. Shaw group in Deepwater Wind, which was announced in October this year, after securing approval from the US competition authorities.The new combined organization—Ørsted US Offshore Wind—will be able to deliver clean energy to every coastal state in the densely-populated east coast corridor between Massachusetts and Virginia. Seven states in that region have

New Research Vessel Ordered for Belgium

new oceanographic research vessel for Belgium. The IMO polar code compliant vessel will be designed to carry out research and survey tasks in the North Sea and its adjacent sea areas, but also in the Mediterranean and more northern areas.The research vessel will cater for the requirements of the Belgian marine scientific community when performing advanced marine research and education at sea – today and in the coming years. This will include research within the fields of geology and sedimentology, fisheries, biology, chemistry, oceanography (including meteorology). In addition, the vessel will be

iSURVEY Completes Nord Stream 2 Survey

obstructions and hazardous seabed features over a 40-kilometer section of route survey in the German Baltic prior to forthcoming pipelay anchoring and mooring operations for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.Taking on a vessel charter, the iSURVEY team had full contract responsibility for the vessel, marine, survey, processing and reporting elements of the entire scope – a first for the group.The survey was carried out from the 42-meter vessel SeaZip Fix, on charter to iSURVEY. The vessel served as platform for the survey and remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operations, with a moonpool deployment

Jumbo Wins Leviathan Work

Dutch offshore services provider Jumbo said it has been awarded a contract for the transportation and installation of a 410-ton subsea production manifold for the Leviathan development off the coast of Israel.Technip, which is preparing for a project including a subsea production system connecting high-rate subsea wells to a fixed platform located approximately 10 kilometers offshore Israel, awarded Jumbo's Offshore division with the contract to perform the task of lowering the manifold onto the seabed at a 1,643-meter water depth and installing various other SSIV’s and valve skids at a

NKT to Supply Cables for Johan Sverdrup 2

Denmark-based cable supplier NKT said it has received a letter of award from Norway's Equinor to supply and install a cable system of 200 kilometers of 80 kV high-voltage DC offshore power cables for the second phase of the Johan Sverdrup oil field development project in the Norwegian North Sea.The award is conditional upon finalization of the formal contract which is likely to take place within a few weeks, NKT said. The contract value is expected to be approximately EUR 110 million, corresponding to roughly EUR 82 million in standard metal prices.The cable system comprises two 200 km of cables

Subsea Global Solutions Acquires Muldoon Marine Services

Commercial diving company Subsea Global Solutions (SGS) said it has acquired Muldoon Marine Services (Muldoon), a commercial diving firm based in Long Beach, Calif."This is an exciting day for the SGS family as this acquisition will further solidify our position as the market leader in underwater ship maintenance, repair and marine construction solutions both locally in California and abroad," said Paul Peters, Chief Executive Officer of SGS. "Muldoon has been operating in the Long Beach area and nearby ports for 30+ years with a solid track record and an exceptional customer service

Dunstall Named JFD Australia Chairman

the Managing Director of Canberra- based strategic advisory firm, Ngamuru Advisory, will assume the position on November 1, 2018.“Harry’s appointment as Chair of JFD Australia comes at a very significant and exciting time for our company which provides the safe, trusted and proven submarine rescue service to the Royal Australian Navy, (RAN),” said JFD Australia Managing Director, Toff Idrus.“With advanced manufacturing centers in Western Australia and New South Wales, a workforce of highly-skilled tradespeople and plans to strengthen our commitment to the local defense sector

L3 OceanServer Expands

L3 OceanServer, a developer and manufacturer of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), has recently added 4,700 square feet of space at its headquarters location in Fall River, Mass. This doubles the operational footprint of the business and will accommodate the company’s rapid growth while continuing to leverage its waterfront location for daily vehicle testing and operations. Additionally, a 46-foot research vessel, R/V Cassiar, has been dedicated to customer training and vehicle testing at L3 OceanServer’s San Diego location.“The decision to expand our physical assets was based on

UTEC Secures Floatover Project in the Middle East

UTEC, a surveying company in subsea services group Acteon, said it has, in partnership with offshore services provider Zamil Offshore, secured a contract in Saudi Arabia for the floatover, from Oman to Saudi Arabia, and installation of multiple platform topsides.UTEC said its scope includes topside dimensional control, positioning and motion monitoring during topside transportation and installation, and metocean and weather prediction services.“2018 has been a great year for UTEC in the Middle East and we have seen a sharp increase in demand for our services,” said Bill Hickie, UTEC Middle

Subsea State? Steady with Waves of Optimism

and gas still suffering from a poor reputation among many young people, not helped by the recent downturn, it’s even more imperative that we demonstrate to the next generation that subsea is an industry in its own right; an industry which works across many diverse vertical markets in oil & gas, marine renewables, aquaculture, defence and ocean science.Against this backdrop, Subsea UK provides leadership to help the sector deliver the growth and high value performance that ensures it makes a valuable contribution to the economy. It’s worth reminding ourselves of the vital role subsea plays

Collaborators Make ROVs Smaller and More User-friendly

Putting together a highly specified remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) is a complex business, often requiring fluid integration of components and software from several different manufacturers. Getting it all to work together takes a high level of collaboration between professionals, located around the world.The Defender models now being produced by Pennsylvania-based VideoRay, a world leader in inspection-class ROVs, are a prime example.For these vehicles, Norwegian Doppler specialist Nortek deployed its DVL1000 Doppler Velocity Log in collaboration with both VideoRay and Vermont’s

UTEC Introduces New AUV Launch and Recovery System

UTEC, a global surveying company in subsea services group Acteon, recently commissioned its new launch and recovery system (LARS) for the fleet of seven autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV) it uses for seabed surveys in the oil and renewables industries.UTEC’s new LARS is a floating garage that enables an AUV to be launched and recovered without needing a small boat, thereby simplifying operations and improving safety. It also increases efficiency and reduces costs by enabling AUV surveys in parallel with construction or laying activities, as the LARS can be deployed from the same work vessel.

Partners Lead New Swarm Technology Research

U.K. based marine technology company Autonomous Robotics Ltd (ARL) will collaborated with Aberdeen’s Robert Gordon University (RGU) to research simultaneous, distributed and scalable localization system for a swarm of autonomous underwater sensor flying nodes.The research will aim to further enhance the capability of the flying node system and further reduce the cost and time for ocean bottom seismic surveys.RGU is a leading Scottish university in Aberdeen, the oil capital of Europe, and its School of Engineering has an outstanding track record of working in collaboration with industry.The Swarm

Schlumberger, TGS Bags New US Seismic Project

Norwegian seismic specialist TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company (TGS) and oilfield services providers Schlumberger have announced a new multiclient nodal seismic project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.The project, named Amendment, will comprise acquisition of a 2,350-km2 multiclient seismic survey in the Mississippi Canyon and Atwater Valley protraction areas of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. This prolific area includes open acreage, existing producing assets and new discoveries.Seismic data will be acquired using Fairfield Geotechnologies 4C nodal acquisition technology with operations expected to commence in Q4

New GPS Interference Mitigation Solution

it matters most, the manufacturer said.“This innovative new product builds on core Hexagon PI technology, to bring proven solutions that minimize vessel downtime and keep crews, operations and equipment working at a time when GPS denial events are increasing in frequency,” said David Russell, Marine Segment Manager at VERIPOS. “GAJT also combines with reliable correction services, Apex or Ultra, to provide an accurate and reliable positioning solution.&rdquo

DOF Subsea Selects Sonardyne Navigation Tech

International subsea services provider DOF Subsea has chosen acoustic and inertial navigation technology from Sonardyne Brasil Ltda. to support its deepwater operations from three vessels offshore Brazil.The three vessels will be equipped with Sonardyne’s SPRINT-Nav all-in-one subsea navigation instrument for underwater vehicles. A remote operated vehicle (ROV) on one of the vessels will also be fitted with a Sonardyne Syrinx Doppler Velocity Log (DVL), in place of its existing system. All three vessels are on long-term contract in Brazilian Waters.SPRINT-Nav combines Sonardyne’s SPRINT

UTEC Makes Two Key Appointments

Surveying company UTEC, part of subsea services group Acteon, has appointed Jon Beatty to lead its Geomarine business unit and long-term employee Greg Hammond to head its StarNet business unit.Beatty joins UTEC Geomarine as managing director and is responsible for its range of geotechnical services, which, when combined with UTEC’s geophysical survey offering, provides a one-stop solution for seabed characterization and sampling. He has more than 25 years of international experience with Schlumberger, having served in technical and management positions spanning reservoir characterization, well

Orsted Expands US Business with $510 Mln Acquisition

Orsted, the world's largest offshore wind developer, said on Monday it would buy U.S.-based Deepwater Wind LLC for $510 million as part of its strategy to expand in a major growth market.The still small U.S. offshore wind sector is seen as one of the most important markets outside the core European region, where subsidies that have underpinned the industry since the early 1990s are starting to be wound back.Deepwater Wind, the builder of the only operating U.S. offshore wind farm, has a portfolio with a capacity of around 3.3 gigawatts (GW). Orsted's U.S portfolio currently has a capacity of 5.

New Water Level Measuring Stations in the Wadden Sea

The Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone that lies between the coast of northwest Europe and the low-lying Frisian Islands. It consists of a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site due to its diverse nature, it is an area of strict environmental conservation.MacArtney has delivered six measuring stations to a German energy supplier in May this year including six Tide Masters designed by British manufacturer Valeport, equipped with Data Telemetry Units. The Tide Master device acts as a water level recorder; it can accurately record the height of the water

Aker Solutions to Supply Subsea Production System for Mero 1

Aker Solutions said it has secured an order from Petrobras to provide a subsea production system and related services for the Mero 1 project, the first full production project within the major Mero field development, one of the largest oil discoveries in Brazil's pre-salt area.The ultra-deepwater Mero field is located in the northwestern area of the original Libra block, which is about 180 kilometers south of Rio de Janeiro. First oil was produced in November last year.Petrobras is the operator of the consortium developing the Libra area. Shell, Total, CNPC and CNOOC Limited are partners. Pre-Sal

Hunting Hydrocarbons

acoustic monitoring (PAM) projects to aid environmental and anthropogenic monitoring during seismic surveys and, it hopes soon, also around offshore wind piling operations monitoring. For PAM operations, broad spectrum hydrophones are mounted to the gliders to record low and high frequency acoustics from marine life.Blue Ocean’s first PAM survey was in 2016, offshore Western Australia, during 3D seismic acquisition operations. The glider was deployed in the survey area and traversed four days, covering about 30km/day, depending on the current, before performing simultaneous operations with the seismic

New Research Vessel for Virginia Institute of Marine Science

A new research vessel for the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has completed sea trials and is transiting to its home port in Virginia.The new vessel, the R/V Virginia, will support the institution’s fisheries research projects and greatly expand VIMS’ capability to perform general oceanographic research in the Chesapeake Bay as well as mid-Atlantic coastal waters. Interest in the new research vessel is already growing rapidly as next season is almost fully booked with science cruises.The 93-foot vessel was built by Meridien Maritime Reparation. JMS Naval Architects performed