ROV Planet Magazine Issue 07 The magazine of choice for Subsea Construction and ROV Professionals. Featuring the Deepwater Oil and Gas Market Report – Extending the Lifespan of the Dan Bravo Oil Complex – Product Focus: Battelle HorizonVue 360 Degrees Camera – Virtual Reality Technology Reveals Underwater Vents in New Ways – Poster – Research Vessel Falkor – The Oceaneering NEXXUS ROV: Revolutionizing Operational Efficiency – The Subsea Bumble Bee – Dedicated to SURF – Interview with Chris Bird: An Oil Company Exec’s Perspective.

Novacavi has just engineered a special hybrid cable for latest electro optical transmission systems in marine application. It is specifically designed with single mode and multi mode fiber optics in several different protocols all together within one metal tube in combination with other electrical components. This customized hybrid cable is conceived as a perfect functional solution with a reliable pressure and temperature resistance in optimized shape.

Offshore and onshore healthcare and medical solutions company Iqarus has acquired Exmed, a leader in remote medical support, equipment and clinical education, as it further progresses its global growth strategy. Exmed’s customers include prominent international government and humanitarian agencies as well as global energy companies and media organisations including the BBC and Discovery Channel. The company supports medical missions and operations in locations including Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Siberia and has also provided logistics support for filming for Top Gear and Comic Relief. Exmed offers unique frontline training services and has invested in a new centre of excellence set to open in July that offers a fully simulated two storey street for replicating mass incident scenarios as well as arctic, jungle and desert simulation.

The National Subsea Research Initiative (NSRI) is launching a drive to develop technology that will make underwater factories and storage more viable, helping to increase the recovery of hydrocarbons and prolong the life of the North Sea. The industry-led, technology organisation is hosting an event on 21 April to break down the barriers to subsea processing and storage. The workshop aims to stimulate investment in and encourage the development of emerging technologies which will speed up the shift from costly surface platforms to subsea plants which will be more cost-effective and enable recovery from smaller, harder to reach fields.

Aker Solutions secured an agreement to provide maintenance and other services for subsea facilities at Petrobras-operated oil and gas fields offshore Brazil. The contract is for a fixed term of three years valued at BRL 435 million net of taxes (NOK 1 billion) and may be extended by another three years. It covers maintenance, storage, supply of parts and technical assistance for all subsea equipment delivered by Aker Solutions to Petrobras in Brazil.

Houston-based subsea technology company, Sonardyne Inc., has announced that its deep water acoustic positioning system, Ranger 2 USBL, has been selected for the U.S Navy’s new oceanographic research vessel, R/V Neil Armstrong. The ship is operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) on behalf of the Navy and replaces the recently retired R/V Knorr vessel which had been in operation since 1970.

Fugro has been awarded a contract by Indian oil and gas company, ONGC, for the provision of ROV services on board the drillship Sagar Vijay. The contract, which was signed at ONGC’s offices in Mumbai, involves providing support for deepwater drilling operations off the east coast of India, in depths up to 900 metres.

Global-leading energy services company Proserv has been awarded a multi-million pound contract with Statoil for the provision of production control equipment in Norway. Proserv will supply five wellhead hydraulic power units (HPUs) for Statoil’s Gullfaks oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea which is undergoing an extensive topside upgrade programme. The design, manufacture and supply of the workscope will be carried out by Proserv’s specialist engineering and project teams in Stavanger, Norway. Work has already begun on the manufacturing of these systems and all five are expected to be delivered to Statoil by 2017.

Just a month after Briggs announced the purchase of the new Forth Warrior from Damen, it is now further strengthening its marine operations capabilities with the addition of a new 25m multicat to its fleet.

Buckthorn Partners and the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) have acquired Ashtead Technology, a leading independent provider of subsea equipment and services to the offshore oil and gas industry. The undisclosed funding package from Buckthorn and APICORP will allow Ashtead to further expand its service offering through both organic and acquisition led growth. The investment will also enable Ashtead to expand its geographical reach, with the Middle East being a particular area of interest and focus for the company.

A wide variety of users including public safety dive teams and commercial dive companies are finding side scan sonar to be an essential piece of equipment in their search and survey operations. This sonar is the ideal tool for these projects because it produces detailed images of the underwater environment regardless of water clarity. It scans several hundred feet of ocean, lake, or river bottom with each pass of the boat allowing large areas to be searched quickly. The sonar’s acoustic beam reflects off any objects lying on the bottom and the data is sent topside where vivid color images are displayed and stored on a laptop or tablet computer. Side scan will locate sunken boats, submerged vehicles, and drowning victims as well as inspect bridge supports, seawalls and dams.

Hydrographic survey single beam echo sounder manufacturer CEE HydroSystems, with offices in Sydney Australia and San Diego, USA has entered into a new 2016 distributor agreement with Truro, UK based Swathe Services, established hydrographic survey instrumentation sales and support specialists. This appointment is the latest in a series of new agency agreements with the goal of further promoting the new CEE echo sounder systems for marine and freshwater survey environments.

U-Boat Worx unveils new private submarines especially designed for cruise ships and tourism, including the deepest-diving ever built. U-Boat Worx has launched three new luxury submarine models: the Cruise Sub 5, Cruise Sub 7 and Cruise Sub 9. The Cruise Sub 5 and 7 are capable of diving to 1,140 meters making them the deepest-diving tourist submersibles ever. Depending on the model, it can carry 5, 7 or 9 persons per dive.

Trelleborg Sealing Solution’s seal manufacturing facility in Tewkesbury, England, is believed to be the first of its kind to obtain a prestigious international quality standard. The facility, which is one of the prime European production and development sites within the Trelleborg Sealing Solutions manufacturing network, has achieved PD ISO/TS 29001:2011. Meeting the standard reflects the facility achieving high standards in the design and manufacturing of elastomer products with robust processes in place as well as a commitment to reduce waste and prevent defects.

Scientists aboard Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel Falkor have developed the first 3D model of an entire hydrothermal vent field for Virtual Reality, covering the largest area of seafloor ever imaged that way.

Oceanology International 2016 (OI2016) held 15-17 March at London’s ExCeL attracted 7,836 unique attendees from 79 countries, with many revisiting on consecutive days to provide an overall show attendance of 14,161.

IKM Consultants AS, together with strategic alliance partners and subcontractors, has been awarded a 4-year framework agreement with Statoil for the delivery of multi-technical disciplines and project administrative consultancy services. The agreement covers onshore, offshore and international services and includes an option period of 2+2 years. The IKM Consultants Alliance is composed of a good match professionally and geographically complementary partners, which ensures the quality in each delivery to Statoil. The Alliance consists of partners with diversified expertise in different disciplines and provides a global footprint in more than 50 countries.

Fugro has completed offshore works undertaken in preparation for full construction of the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) at Aberdeen Bay, Scotland.