PSA Audits Xmas Tree for Snorre Expansion
Norway's offshore watchdog the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) said it has carried out an audit of Equinor and the fabrication of the subsea Christmas tree for the Snorre expansion project.The objective of the February audit was to ensure that fabrication of the subsea Christmas tree for the Snorre expansion project complied with the company’s own requirements and requirements in the regulations, PSA said. A sub-goal was to follow up how the project is undertaking its supervisory duty in respect of its supplier, TechnipFMC.PSA siad it did not identify any non-conformities during the audit
U.S. Navy Requests $205.6B in 2020
Fiscal Year 20 Budget request submitted to Congress is $205.6 billion, a 4.8% increase from the FY19 enacted budget. Specifics of the budget are focused on six specific dimensions:The FY20 budget requests funding for more ships – as the navy continues to progress toward a 355-ship fleet – submarines, aircraft and people, and highlights include: The budget provides for a deployable battle force of 301 ships in FY20 including 11 aircraft carriers and 10 big deck amphibious ships that serve as the foundation of our carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups. This year’s budget request
Chevron to Use Subsea Compression at Jansz-Io
Aker Solutions announced Tuesday it has been awarded a master contract to support the delivery of a subsea compression system for the Chevron Australia-operated Jansz-Io field offshore Australia, marking the first time the technology will be used outside of Norway.Compression helps to maintain plateau gas production rates as reservoir pressure drops over time, but such compressors have typically been installed on platforms over sea level. Placing this equipment on the seabed and near the wellheads improves recovery rates and reduces capital and operating costs, Aker Solutions said.The first
Trump Requests $200.5 Mln for BSEE, $193.4 for BOEM
U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed fiscal year (FY) 2020 budget submitted to Congress on Monday includes $200.5 million for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and $193.4 million for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), up from the respective $199.9 million and $179.3 million requests for FY 2019.The requested BSEE budget includes $129.9 million of appropriated funds and $70.6 million in offsetting collections of revenue from rental receipts, and cost recovery and inspection fees. This $70.6 million of revenue accounts for 35 percent of the requested budget.
Salvors Lift Norwegian Frigate
Salvors used a unique lift method that combined two heavy lift vessels and four cranes to raise a Norwegian frigate that had become partially submerged following a collision with an oil tanker off the coast of Norway in November.On November 8, 2018, Norwegian heavy frigate KNM Helge Ingstad collided with the tanker Sola TS near Bergen, and sank on the inclined slope of a fjord. The accident injured eight people and caused the temporary closure of the Sture Oil Terminal near Bergen and the nearby Kollsness gas-and-condensate terminal, as well as several offshore fields.
Kraken Receives $2.3 Mln from Ocean Infinity
Kraken Robotics Inc. announced Tuesday it has received $2.3 million from Ocean Infinity from the exercise of 5,760,000 warrants that had been issued in connection with the company’s private placement of units to Ocean Infinity in June 2018. The warrants expire in June 2021 and had an exercise price of $0.40.Karl Kenny, Kraken's President & CEO said, "We are pleased with the exercise of these warrants by Ocean Infinity and the confidence they are showing in our strategic direction. We recently completed factory acceptance tests (FAT) at our German facility on the first battery units
BP Partners with Enpro on FAM Technology
BP and Enpro Subsea have executed a Global Frame Agreement aimed at providing an enhanced subsea architecture and smart standardization using Flow Access Module (FAM) technology to enable fast track, capital efficient subsea tiebacks.Enpro said its patented FAM technology supplied to BP on the Kepler K3 project in the Gulf of Mexico to enable project specific technologies to be seamlessly added to BP’s standard subsea trees and manifolds. According to Enpro, this helped to reduce project costs and schedule, to support BP in achieving sanction to first oil in less than 12 months.The FAM technology
Planet Ocean, EOM Offshore Sign Agreement
EOM Offshore’s specialized mooring equipment to its portfolio will strengthen the company’s capabilities.EOM Offshore is a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) spin-off that was established to commercialize its patented Stretch EM Cable, along with its Electromechanical Chain and its Marine Recovery Systems. The Stretch EM Cable solves many problems commonly associated with traditional catenary mooring systems, and it provides an ideal platform for real-time acoustic monitoring, due to its ability to isolate ambient noise from acoustic sensors that are on the mooring.
R/V Bob and Betty Beyster: New CAT For Scripps
The Research Vessel Bob and Betty Beyster is a purpose-built coastal research vessel designed for efficient operations offshore Southern California and throughout the Channel Islands. Based at the Scripps Nimitz Marine Facility and operated as a shared-use facility, Bob and Betty Beyster provides scientists, students and engineers a capable, safe and economical platform for research and teaching.R/V Bob and Betty Beyster is a 42-foot scientific workboat with a range of 500 nautical miles, a cruising speed better than 25 knots, and a capacity for six scientists and a boat operator. The vessel has
Subsea 7 Profit Beats Forecast
Subsea 7 posted higher-than-expected fourth-quarter profits on Thursday and announced a special dividend payment as well as an extension of its share buybacks.The Oslo-listed offshore services provider's adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization fell 7.4 percent year-on-year to $163 million, while analysts in a Reuters poll on average predicted a $146 million profit."A new two-year $200 million share repurchase program has been announced, enabled by our strong financial and liquidity position and improving market outlook," Subsea 7 said in a statement.Pending
Enhanced Seismic Monitoring at Johan Sverdrup
through the water column from the seabed to the sea surface as well as the pressure (depth) at the seabed. This data is then used to calculate a continuous time history of average water velocity and tidal variation throughout the whole water column.While PIES instruments are already very widely used in marine seismic survey operations, this will be only the second time where PIES units are hardwired into topside power and communication infrastructure, which means Equinor will have instant and continuous access to its data. Conventionally, PIES data is collected acoustically by a passing surface vessel
Fugro Sees Margin Improvement in 2019
Dutch deep-sea prospector Fugro reported on Monday a 19.2 percent rise in full-year 2018 revenue to 1.65 billion euros ($1.87 billion), helped by growth across all divisions.The company met its 2018 revenue and EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) margin targets, however it failed to deliver positive cash flow from operating activities after investments."Excluding the impact of increased working capital, cash flow was break-even, a significant improvement compared to 2017," the company said in a statement."We have benefited from the gradual recovery of the oil and gas market and the
N-Sea Scores North Sea Contracts
UK and Netherlands-based subsea provider N-Sea said it has been awarded two multimillion dollar contracts for a pair of unnamed operators in the North Sea.Managed and supported by N-Sea’s Aberdeen base, the first is a three-year contract, awarded by an international operator. According to N-Sea, the workscope will take place across a number of the operator’s UK North Sea assets and includes air diving inspection, repair and maintenance, in addition to light construction requirements from its diving support vessels and dive daughter craft. Additionally, and following an initial
Offshore ROV Market: $330m by 2025
ROV in the regions of North America and Europe that is expected to drive the market for more advanced offshore ROV, said a report from QY Research. Increasing of underwater fields expenditures, recovery of oil & gas industry, launches in introducing new products, increasing of spending on marine work, retrofitting and renovation of old technology, increasing adoption of offshore ROV will drive global market growth.The consumption volume of offshore ROV is related to downstream industries and global economy. As there will always be some uncertain in the global economy in the following years
ArgoX90: Rocket Recovery Boat
Parker Shinn and Morrelli & Melvin introduce the ArgoX90, a unique concept designed to significantly reduce space launch and rocket component recovery costs.Rocket reusability has become the space industry’s focus to reduce cost. While SpaceX has landed boosters on drone ships hundreds of miles out to sea, expensive parts of a rocket have still proven unrecoverable. The ArgoX90 may change that.“A boat like this could lower launch costs by 10% in some cases,” said Shinn, who conceived of the original concept. “Not only could it catch fairings (the top of a rocket that houses
Aker Solutions Revenues Up 8%
Aker Solutions reports Q4 2018 revenue of $813 million, an 8% rise compared to Q4 2017 powered by “significant international awards in a competitive, but improving market.” In total, order intake for the quarter was $615.6 million, leaving the company with an order backlog of more than $4 billion. Better still, looking forward the company sees “continued signs of a recovery in the global market” with approximately $5.2 billion worth of contracts currently in the bid phase.In analyzing the results, executives credit an improving market in step with its own “investments in
Nuclear-enabled ROV for Sellafield
Sellafield selected a Saab Seaeye Tiger robotic vehicle to work in one of the most hazardous environments on the planet.The announcement came after the Tiger had worked consistently in the highly-corrosive conditions for nine months, during which time it only needed to pause for routine maintenance. Sellafield has now ordered four Tigers for this extremely challenging role.Specially adapted for the role by Saab Seaeye engineers in collaboration with Sellafield engineers, when applied to nuclear waste, the Tiger’s durability means that there is limited need for intervention by operators for
Enpro Testing New FIS Technology
Aberdeen-based production optimization specialist Enpro Subsea announced that the £1.5 million investment project in its Flow Intervention Services (FIS) technology, which included a £755,000 research and development grant from Scottish Enterprise, has started onshore testing ahead of planned subsea field trials later this year.The company had previously developed a lower pressure (10kpsi) version of their tool and this investment has allowed them to develop the higher rated (15kpsi) version, extending its operating capabilities to support high pressure wells, common in Gulf of Mexico.
New Tech Simulates Methane Hydrate Recovery
New technology developed in Japan aims to help engineers design equipment for lifting shallow methane hydrate from the seabed, and to ensure the success of subsea lifting operations and gas production above the ocean surface.The new equipment jointly developed by Mitsui E&S Holdings Co., Ltd. (MES-HD) and Fukuoka University has been designed to simulate the recovery of shallow methane hydrate from the seabed of Japan's exclusive economic zone (EEZ), where there are high expectations for future development and harvesting resources such as shallow methane hydrate, sandy layer type methane hydrate
JW Fishers’ Pulse 8X Continues to Outperform
, and I look forward to comparing it alongside my other brand of detector when in Australia this coming August. One thing noted right away was the ability to hold threshold much better than the competitor.”Police and Dive Teams also utilize the Pulse 8X for their day-to-day jobs. The King County Marine Rescue Dive Unit (MRDU) in Kirkland WA purchased a detector earlier this year. The MRDU deploys specially trained and equipped divers that are responsible for water-related law enforcement, investigations, rescue, and recovery work. Duties include victim recovery and investigation, evidence search
Downed Fighter Jet Recovered off Hawaii
plane was sent crashing into the ocean.The aicraft hit the water about 1 mile south of Honolulu in an area with many small boats. The number of boats in the area meant there were many cellphone videos, making the general location of the plane easier to pinpoint.Working to find the sunken aircraft, Parker Marine Salvage contacted Steve Van Meter of Van Meter Consulting to help pinpoint the exact location.An extensive sidescan sonar mission, lasting several days, had identified 75 potential targets on a seabed littered with old debris from years of dumping. Van Meter studied these targets and identified the
Meet PoBo: Floating Platform for Disaster Relief
GD European Land Systems develops floating platform for civil protection and disaster reliefGeneral Dynamics European Land Systems-Bridge Systems won a contract to develop a multi-functional, modular floating platform known as Pontoon Boat (PoBo). The project was awarded under the Innovation Program for the Support of Diversification Strategies of Defense Companies in Civil Security Technologies, or DIVERS. DIVERS is a program launched by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (BMWI), with VDI Technologiezentrum GmbH as the responsible project executing agency."The PoBo is a
JFD Wins DSRV Contract from Republic of Korea Navy
The subsea operations and manufacturing company JFD, a part of James Fisher and Sons, has received a multi-million dollar contract for the design and build of an advanced Deep Search and Rescue Vehicle (DSRV).The DSRV will be delivered as a part of a submarine rescue capability being provided to the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN).The contract, awarded by South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME), will ensure the provision of an advanced and highly capable submarine rescue vehicle to the South Korean Navy that will ensure the highest standards in safety for submariners.
Schlumberger Sees International Growth in 2019
Schlumberger NV on Friday reported quarterly revenue that topped estimates and forecast single-digit growth in international markets this year even as crude prices have tumbled roughly 30 percent since October.With the drop in oil prices many producers were evaluating spending budgets for 2019, stoking concerns that a slowdown in activity would hurt oilfield service companies that have struggled to boost prices since the 2014 downturn.Schlumberger, a bellwether for the oilfield services sector, said recent volatility in crude prices has led to more uncertainty in the spending outlook for oil and gas
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
Swire Seabed Orders a HUGIN AUV
, magnetometer and turbidity sensor.The vehicle will also make use of Kongsberg’s automatic pipeline tracking solution, which utilizes the SAS or multibeam echo sounder to track alongside or above a pipeline, to conduct survey and inspection tasks.Atle Gran, Kongsberg Maritime Area Sales Manager for Marine Robotics, said, “This HUGIN has a wide array of sensors and capabilities making it suitable for many different types of commercial applications including pipeline inspection, geophysical survey and hydrography.”Flexible and self-contained, the AUV will measure approximately 5.2 meters
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
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
Oil Spill Cleanup Device Tailored for the Arctic
A new oil spill response device capable of cleaning up spills in arctic conditions has been launched in an effort to bolster Norway’s spill preparedness.The new device, dubbed Arctic FoxTail, is a winterized version of H. Henriksen’s standard Foxtail vertical adhesion band (VAB) skimmer, which filters out oil spills from the seawater using its sorbent mops. The system is capable of salvaging large quantities of oil after a spill, without much unnecessary water.Tonsberg-based H. Henriksen began to develop the arctic ready system through the Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating
OSIL Unveils Microplastics Sampler
Oceanic microplastic pollution is a growing concern across the globe as new and existing marine litter continues to degrade and fragment through physical and chemical processes.Global environmental monitoring experts Ocean Scientific International Ltd (OSIL) has developed a new Microplastics Sampler for the collection of water samples for the analysis of plastic particles smaller than 5 mm including fragments, films, pellets/nurdles, granules/beads, filaments and foams.The unique device is a large volume water sampler that allows researchers to collect and characterize suspended and sinking particles
Aqueos Supports South Texas-Tuxpan Gas Pipeline
Aqueos Corporation said it has completed a major diving scope for the installation and commissioning of the South Texas-Tuxpan Gas Pipeline. The South Texas-Tuxpan Gas Pipeline is being constructed by a joint venture between TransCanada (60%) and Sempra Energy’s Mexican unit IEnova (40%), also known as Infraestructura Marina del Golfo (IMG). The $3.1 billion project is being sponsored by the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) of Mexico.Carrying U.S. natural gas to Mexico from west Texas, this 42-in. pipeline is ~800km in length and runs offshore from Brownsville, Texas to a shore-end
Schlumberger Bags Equinor Contract for Subsea Boosting System
Norwegian oil and gas firm Equinor has awarded an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to OneSubsea, a Schlumberger company.The contract is for the supply of the industry’s first all-electric actuated subsea boosting system for the Vigdis Field in the Norwegian North Sea.The scope of the contract includes a pump station, with a manifold foundation and protective structure; and a pump module, topside equipment, umbilical, and all-electric controls with electric actuation.“We are delighted to be working with Equinor on the successful long-term development of the Vigdis
NATO Uses IoT to Study the Oceans
of Oldenburg’s work monitoring plastic debris in the North Sea and Spain’s coastal authority, Salvamento Maritimo, using SPOT Trace to devise oil spill disaster recovery procedures. The National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics and the “Istituto di Scienze Marine” of the Italian National Research Council use SPOT Trace to study surface currents in the Mediterranean and the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science has used large quantities of SPOT Trace satellite trackers also for oceanographic and oil spill research
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
Vigdis Gets a Boost
company’s plant at Horsøy near Bergen. OneSubsea will use several subcontractors, including Framo Flatøy fabricating the pump and Luster Mekaniske Industri fabricating piping.“A contract for the work to be performed on the Snorre A and B platforms will be awarded later, whereas marine operations will be performed under Equinor’s framework contracts,” Rød said.Jez Averty, Equinor’s senior vice president for Operations South, said Equinor has continuously developed the Vigdis field through several phases of further development. When the field came on
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
ROV Innovation Saves Millions for Woodside
An innovative use of remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) technology for subsea jacket inspections at Australia’s largest oil and gas development has demonstrated substantial cost reductions and operational improvements.In March this year Fugro began a nine-month inspection campaign of Woodside’s offshore facilities on the Australian North West Shelf. Fugro said its novel platform deployed ROV (PDROV) for subsea jacket inspections was able to help Woodside reduce costs by around AUD 10 million per inspection cycle.“Very early in the project we identified an alternative to
Thailand Raises Shipwreck That Killed 47 Tourists
Thailand on Saturday raised the shipwreck that killed 47 Chinese tourists in July, part of an ongoing investigation into the cause of the boat capsizing, officials said."The Phoenix is an important piece of evidence to determine the cause of the accident," Tourist Police Bureau Deputy Chief, Major General Surachate Hakparn, told reporters."When the case is final, it will be able to restore Chinese tourist confidence," he said separately in a statement.The Phoenix went down in high seas in July off Thailand's west-coast island of Phuket with 101 people on board, made up of 12
Subsea ‘Smart Standardization’
Enpro Subsea & Kosmos Energy commit to subsea ‘smart standardization’ in Gulf of MexicoEnpro Subsea reached a Master Services Agreement (MSA) with Kosmos Energy (formerly Deep Gulf Energy) aimed at providing enhanced subsea architecture and smart standardization via Enpro’s patented Flow Access Module (FAM) technology.FAM essentially creates an enhanced production ‘USB port’ within the jumper envelope. This enables the operator to use standard subsea Xmas Trees and Manifolds, with FAM providing life of field flexibility within the system design, delivering ‘Smart
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
ROVs to Investigate Lost Shipping Containers
Remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROV) will be deployed to investigate containers lost from a cargo ship in heavy seas off Australia.The YM Efficiency, operated by Taiwan shipping company Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation, was sailing from Taiwan to Sydney in early June when it lost dozens of containers overboard amid five-meter swells in the Tasman Sea, about 30 kilometers off Australia's east coast.The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), citing serious potential impacts to local fishing and the environment, said it has been "extremely concerned at the lack of progress in
N-Sea Expands Its Middle East Capabilities
Inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) subsea services provider N-Sea said it has reinforced its commitment to the Middle East with expanded its service capabilities in the region.N-Sea, which opened its regional office in Dubai in 2016, said its TUP (transfer under pressure) Diving System has recently arrived in the Middle East for refurbishment and work in the regionDesigned and built in-house by N-Sea, the TUP Diving System is a mobile, surface-oriented closed bell diving system comprising a three-man bell, launch and recovery system, triple lock decompression chamber and gas diver control
Kreuz Glorious Mobilized for ONGC Project
Singapore-headquartered subsea services business Kreuz Subsea and Indian consortium partner Seamec Ltd completed the mobilization of the Kreuz Glorious vessel to commence a two-year project with India’s Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).The scope of work includes the inspection of 27 offshore jackets in the Mumbai High North, Mumbai High South, Heera, Neelam and Bassien assets, located off the coast of Mumbai in the Arabian Sea.The construction work barge is specifically designed to work around complex jackets which are often inaccessible by more traditionally utilized DP2 diving vessels.
Tech Spotlight: JW Fisher’s CT-1 Cable Tracker
tracked is “dead,” then a signal will have to be induced into the cable. The signal injector is connected to the shore end of the target cable and, after the signal has been sent, the cable tracker probe is used to locate the electromagnetic signal along the length of the cable.Intercoastal Marine, LLC. was established in 2013 and has developed into a well-respected unlimited general contractor. Located in Castle Hayne, N.C., Intercoastal Marine began as a small commercial diving and service corporation supporting heavy construction, utility, and manufacturing industries throughout the Mid-Atlantic
Fugro Q3 Revenue Jumps
revenue on a comparable basis, driven by the expansion of offshore wind developments and a recovery in the global oil and gas market.Rising oil prices have helped Fugro by making it more economic to prospect for the hard-to-reach subsea deposits in which it specializes."In our early cyclical marine site characterisation activities we are experiencing sharp growth and improving prices, resulting in strongly improved profitability," Chief Executive Mark Heine said in a statement on Friday.Third-quarter revenue reached 434.7 million euros ($494 million). The company's backlog for the
Drafinsub Chooses Falcon ROV
Italian underwater works company Drafinsub chose the Saab Seaeye Falcon electric remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) for the wide ranging and complex tasks undertaken by the company.“We chose the Falcon because it's the industry standard for observation robotic vehicles,” said Andrea Dellacasa from Drafinsub. “It is reliable, scalable and suitable for most kind of works, from observation to non-destructive testing and survey.“Our company has more than 20 years’ experience with ROVs and we felt it was the right time to take a leap in quality, with the completion
Underwater Glider Goes Searching for North Atlantic Right Whales
gear.The 1.5-meter-long Slocum glider is a buoyancy driven underwater drone that rises and dives in the water to propel itself forward while gathering data. Onboard the vehicle, the OceanObserver system records the underwater sounds while running seven automated cetacean detectors that flag possible marine mammal calls. The glider comes to the surface every three hours to send the flagged events to shore. JASCO’s analysts review the events and send the confirmed detections to project stakeholders.“DFO’s unprecedented move this year to protect the remaining right whales is amazing
Angola’s New Fishery Research Vessel Delivered
Damen Shipyards Galati has made provisional delivery of the 74-meter fishery research vessel Baía Farta to the Angolan Ministry of Fisheries. The vessel will remain in Galati until November, when she will set sail for Angola where the final delivery will take place.With a 1,600 km Atlantic coastline, the development of the domestic fishing industry is a priority of the Angolan government and it currently employs over 100,000 people in both commercial and artisanal fishing.The Baía Farta, a Damen FRV 7417 type vessel ordered in July 2016 and officially launched in November 2017, is
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.
Seismic From Below
of seismic data using nodes placed on the sea floor, Ocean Bottom Seismic (OBS) and its use in deep water with Ocean Bottom Nodes (OBN) have been growing rapidly in recent years due to considerable cost savings resulting from innovations in technology and operational concepts. Claudio Paschoa, Marine Technology Reporter’s correspondent in Brazil spoke to Stephan Midenet, CEO of Seabed Geosolutions about OBS technology in general and OBN operations in Brazil.Ocean Bottom Seismic (OBS) TechnologyOBS technology has been around for academic applications since before World War II. The first
Kraken, ThayerMahan Demonstrate SeaScout for US Navy
Kraken Robotics Inc. wholly owned subsidiary, Kraken Robotic Systems Inc., in cooperation with ThayerMahan Inc., demonstrated its SeaScout Expeditionary Seabed Mapping and Intelligence System during the U.S. Navy’s Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX) held last month in Newport, R.I. This was the first at-sea test and evaluation carried out since both companies signed a strategic alliance agreement in February 2018.U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Michael Connor (retired), ThayerMahan’s President and CEO, said, “It’s our fundamental mission to integrate and deploy the latest sensors
Navy Divers to Have Automated Logging from Worn Dive Computers
at sea into a system known as the Dive/Jump Reporting System (DJRS). Manual entries can be time-consuming and allow human error.Enter the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Global TechSolutions program, a rapid-response science and technology program focused on solutions to problems submitted by Sailors and Marines.ONR TechSolutions and industry partners have created a new tool called the Scuba Binary Dive Application (SBDA) 100 to digitally plan, record and report dive-profile information to DJRS. The application will accelerate the process of logging and uploading dive information, and will help eliminate
L3 Technologies Wins Navy Deal
L3 Technologies, Ocean Systems Division, Sylmar, California, was awarded a $49,364,268 cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity sole-source contract to provide support and repair services for the TB-23 towed array systems and related test equipment. L-3 will evaluate, salvage, repair and refurbish TB-23/BQ Towed Array System modules and associated test equipment and provide inventory management services. Support services include the engineering and technician services for tasking in the following areas: engineering and technical services, depot operations, logistics
New ASV Delivered for Post-hurricane Surveying
sidescan/bathy multibeam echo-sounder (MBES), R2 Sonic 2022 MBES, Applanix WaveMaster POS MV inertial navigation system (INS), a SeaRobotics’ cast winch and a castable AML BaseX² sound velocity probe (SVP). The two multibeam systems were chosen to provide exceptional data quality in multiple marine environments, aiding in the rapid assessment of navigation hazards. The lightweight SeaRobotics’ cast winch deploys the SVP used to generate corrective sound velocity profiles by the onboard data acquisition computer.“The rapid deployment and ease of assembly of the ASV, as well as the
Transocean to Buy Ocean Rig in $2.7 Bln Deal
Offshore oil driller Transocean Ltd said on Tuesday it would buy peer Ocean Rig UDW Inc in a $2.7 billion cash-and-stock deal, its second major acquisition this year as the company bets on a recovery in the offshore sector.The acquisition signals new optimism for offshore drillers, which were hit hard by the steep plunge in oil prices from 2014. Offshore projects, which are more costly than onshore work and take years to develop, became less attractive after oil prices fell to below $30 a barrel in 2016.Global crude prices have since recovered to above $70, renewing producer interest in offshore
AI Guides Rapid Data-Driven Exploration of Changing Underwater Habitats
A recent expedition led by Dr. Blair Thornton, holding Associate Professorships at both the University of Southampton and the Institute of Industrial Science, the University of Tokyo, demonstrated how the use of autonomous robotics and artificial intelligence at sea can dramatically accelerate the exploration and study of hard to reach deep sea ecosystems, like intermittently active methane seeps. Thanks to rapid high throughput data analysis at sea, it was possible to identify biological hotspots at the Hydrate Ridge Region off the coast of Oregon, quickly enough to survey and sample them
Equinor to Boost Drilling to Extend Norwegian Shelf Life
Oil producer Equinor aims to boost the recovery rate from its Norwegian fields to well above the global average to extend production from the mature basin beyond 2030.Equinor announced plans on Tuesday to drill up to 3,000 wells offshore from its native Norway in coming decades - almost as many as it has drilled since its startup in 1972 - to mitigate declining output from older fields, and extend the production lifetime of more than 20 installations.The company said it remained on track for to keep profitable oil and gas production in Norway towards 2030, but needed new measures to tackle a decline
ABS Issues Subsea Processing Advisory
ABS has developed the Subsea Processing System (SPRS) Advisory that provides an overview of the SPRS and associated sub-systems that are currently available and addresses its technology maturity level.The advisory also describes the role of ABS as an independent classification society in the verification and validation of subsea processing technologies including new/unproven technologies through the ABS New Technology Qualification services.The advisory is the first in a series of publications planned by ABS over the next few years. Future publications will include guidance notes, advisories and white
Shipping Companies Recognized for Efforts to Save Whales
off the coast of California.The companies participated in a Voluntary Speed Reduction initiative by slowing their ships to speeds of 10 knots (about 11.5 mph) or lower while transiting vessel traffic lanes outside the Golden Gate during whale feeding season, from May through mid-November.The national marine sanctuaries of North-central California - Greater Farallones, Cordell Bank and Monterey Bay sanctuaries - are prime foraging grounds for several endangered whale species, and through these same waters pass some of the heaviest shipping traffic in the world. In a spirit of “share the road,&rdquo
Enpro Subsea Supports First Oil for LLOG Exploration in Gulf of Mexico
In June, LLOG Exploration delivered first production from its Crown and Anchor field in the Gulf of Mexico. This milestone also represents a major achievement for Aberdeen based Enpro Subsea as it is the first of multiple deployments by LLOG of its patented Flow Access Module (FAM) technology.The FAM technology was selected by LLOG as it fully aligns with the company's strategic approach to fast track, capital efficient subsea tiebacks. FAM essentially creates an enhanced production ‘USB port’ within the jumper envelope. This enables the operator to use standard subsea Xmas Trees
