Marine Link
Thursday, April 3, 2025
SUBSCRIBE

Remotely Operated Vehicle News

02 Apr 2025

Louis Dreyfus, MaDfly Launch ROV in Open Sea Operations

(Credit: Louis Dreyfus Armateurs)

Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) and MaDfly have deployed a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) in open sea conditions, marking a breakthrough in offshore in-water surveys.The operation was conducted on the service operation vessel (SOV) Wind of Hope next to the Hornsea 2 wind farm in England, marking a significant advancement in offshore inspection technologies.The innovative in-water survey was performed by MaDfly’s expert team under the supervision of the classification society Bureau Veritas.According to LDA…

27 Feb 2025

Carnival Corp Leans on Tech to Boost Vessel Efficiency, Cut Emissions

Copyright Mary Salen/AdobeStock

Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest cruise company, is advancing greater fuel efficiency for propulsion through hull designs and new hardware and technology, along with underwater drone inspection and cleaning trials.This work is done through complementary strategies focused on maximizing hydrodynamic performance and enhancing ongoing hull maintenance, which reduces a ship’s underwater drag. Here's a synopsis of the CCL strategy:Hull Designs: When selecting the optimal hull design…

21 Feb 2025

Schmidt Ocean Institute Successfully Concludes Inaugural Antarctic Expedition

Penguins, Falkor Image Courtesy Schmidt Ocean Institute

After a year of preparing the ship and crew, Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel Falkor (too) has completed its first science expedition to Antarctica. The three-week expedition, which ended in early January, was ambitious in its science scope and required operational refinements to navigate safely in unfamiliar environmental conditions.“Operating our ship in the Southern Ocean marks a significant milestone in Schmidt Ocean Institute’s history,” said Eric King, senior director of maritime infrastructure.

20 Feb 2025

Eidesvik, Agalas and Reach Subsea Order New Dual-Fuel Hybrid CSV

(Credit: Eidesvik Offshore)

Eidesvik Offshore, Agalas, and Reach Subsea have partnered up to build a new construction support vessel (CSV) for subsea and offshore renewables operations.The new CSV will have similar specifications as the vessel Eidesvik currently has under construction together with Agalas at the Sefine Shipyard in Turkey.The vessel will also be built at the Sefine Shipyard, with delivery scheduled for spring 2027.It will be specifically equipped to perform inspection, maintenance, and repair (IMR) work.Upon delivery…

30 Jan 2025

DeepOcean Lines Up Subsea Survey Work for Polish Offshore Wind Farms

Superior SROV (Credit: DeepOcean)

Ocean services provider DeepOcean has secured a subsea survey contract on the Bałtyk 2 and 3 offshore wind developments in Poland which are jointly developed by Equinor and Polenergia.Under the contract, DeepOcean will conduct geophysical seabed surveys of the export and inter-array cable seabed corridors, utilizing a dedicated survey remotely operated vehicle (SROV).The work scope also includes surveys to map the seabed for potential unexploded ordnances (UXO). Polish company MEWO will serve as a subcontractor to DeepOcean for the UXO scope…

04 Dec 2024

HullWiper, Unidive Subsea to Deliver ROV Hull Cleaning Services in Singapore

HullWiper in action (Credit HullWiper)

HullWiper has signed a lease agreement with Unidive Subsea to bring its eco-friendly Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) hull cleaning technology to PSA terminals, Seatrium Yards and Singapore’s inner anchorages.Plans are also in place to expand services to FPSOs, FSOs and semi-submersibles under contracts with regional oil and gas companies.Unidive Subsea provides diving and ROV services, supporting leading oil and drilling companies in Singapore.In partnership with HullWiper, the…

25 Nov 2024

Subsea Global Robotic Hull Cleaning gets the Green Light in Singapore

Image courtesy Subsea Global Solutions

Subsea Global Solutions reports that authorities in Singapore have granted approval of its hull cleaning services for vessels, allowing underwater cleaning to take place while vessels are engaged in cargo work at the terminal. The approved cleaning procedure requires the use of a Cleaning Remotely Operated Vehicle (C-ROV) equipped with an integrated filtration plant, designed to capture and reclaim materials, ensuring compliance with Singapore’s stringent environmental regulations.

13 Sep 2024

Divers Recover Video Equipment from Mike Lynch’s Sunken Yacht

(Photo: Italian Coast Guard)

Italian Navy divers have recovered video surveillance equipment from the superyacht that sank off Sicily last month, killing British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and six other people, a source close to the matter said on Friday.The recovery of the equipment could help explain why the British-flagged Bayesian went down during a severe and sudden storm off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, on Aug. 19 - an event that has puzzled naval experts.Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, four guests and the cook died when the 56-meter-long (184-foot) yacht capsized and sank within minutes.

22 Aug 2024

Four Bodies Recovered from Sunken Yacht in Sicily

(Photo: Vigili del Fuoco)

Four bodies were retrieved on Wednesday from the sunken wreck of a yacht belonging to the wife of British tech magnate Mike Lynch, the Italian fire brigade said, adding that they were continuing to search for two missing people.The bodies were brought ashore on rescue boats and taken to nearby hospitals for formal identification. Local authorities refused to give any information about who they might have found.Britain's Daily Telegraph reported that two of the dead were Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter…

21 Aug 2024

Two Bodies Found Inside Sunken Yacht off Sicily

(Photo: Vigili del Fuoco)

Scuba divers scouring the wreck of British tech magnate Mike Lynch's family yacht, which sank off Sicily two days ago, have found two bodies inside it, a source close to rescue operations said on Wednesday.One of the bodies belonged to a heavily built man, the source said.Rescue officials have been looking for six missing people, including Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International.The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-meter-long (184-ft) superyacht…

20 Aug 2024

USCG RDC: Vessels, Tech, Partnerships Help to Thwart Narcotics, Human Smugglers

Image courtesy US Coast Guard RDC

In 2011 the 210-foot Coast Guard Cutter VIGILANT was on patrol in the Caribbean when it came upon a suspected maritime narcotics smuggler. As the chase ensued, the suspected smuggler jettisoned bales of what turned out to be cocaine. The VIGILANT crew marked the position on their radar and gathered the latitude and longitude for the bales, then went in pursuit of the suspect vessel. After the suspect was apprehended, the VIGILANT returned to the original position in search of the bales…

04 Jun 2024

Dutch Subsea Services Newcomer Acquires First Vessel

Navicula Star (Credit: FreeStar Subsea Services)

FreeStar Subsea Services, a Netherlands-based company established by the merger of Vriezoo ROV Services and Mark Offshore, has acquired its first vessel and started operations.The company offers remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and survey support services with its own vessel, the SSV Navicula Star, which was recently acquired the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ).While most mid-sized subsea companies specialize in either vessel or ROV services, FreeStar’s owners…

02 Apr 2024

Van Oord Duo Dredging in the Prinses Amaliahaven in Rotterdam

Source: Van Oord

Van Oord’s cutter suction dredger Biesbosch and trailing suction hopper dredger Vox Apolonia are teaming up to dredge the Prinses Amaliahaven located on Maasvlakte in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.A consortium of Van Oord, HOCHTIEF and Ballast Nedam has constructed 2.4 kilometres of new quay wall. The new quays are being dredged to a depth of more than 20 metres below sea level. This development means that the Port of Rotterdam Authority is ensuring an expansion of container capacity in Rotterdam.In total 1…

15 Mar 2024

Ulstein Introduces New Subsea Vessel for Offshore Energy Market

Rendering of ULSTEIN SX232 vessel (Credit: Ulstein)

Norwegian shipbuilder and ship designer Ulstein has developed a new subsea vessel - ULSTEIN SX232 – designed to service the offshore wind market for floating and fixed installations as well as offshore oil and gas industry.Designed for walk-to-work operations in the offshore energy market, the ULSTEIN SX232 features an optimizes hull based on the ULSTEIN TWIN X-STERN design.The vessel is equipped with smart power and propulsion system developed to minimize energy consumption during DP operations and an integrated energy recovery system utilizing all the waste heat in the machinery systems…

29 Dec 2023

Mermaid Secures $10M Loan to Repay Subsea Vessel Acquisition

(Credit: Mermaid Maritime)

Thai subsea services company Mermaid Maritime has through its subsidiary Mermaid Subsea Oil and Gas Services (MSOGS) secured a loan of up to $10 million for the acquisition of Mermaid Sapphire ROV support vessel.The loan agreement, SinoPac Capital International, will facilitate the reimbursement of Mermaid’s equity used for the acquisition of the Mermaid Sapphire.The Mermaid Sapphire is a DP2 remotely operated vehicle (ROV) support vessel equipped with a deepwater work-class ROV…

20 Nov 2023

154kg of Cocaine Seized from Ship’s Sea Chest

Source: AFP

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is warning criminals that their attempts to hide illicit drugs in the hull of cargo ships continues to be disrupted by law enforcement after another import was seized by authorities in Melbourne.Packages of cocaine concealed inside the sea chest of a cargo ship was seized after the vessel docked in Melbourne, the second attempted import of its kind in two months.Australian Border Force (ABF) used an underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) at Melbourne's Appleton Dock to search a vessel…

16 Nov 2023

Remaining Titan Submersible Debris Salvaged

Source: Phoenix International

Phoenix International Holdings, under the direction of the U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV), have recovered the remaining debris of the Titan submersible from the North Atlantic seafloor near the RMS Titanic shipwreck.Work was performed using Phoenix’s Remora remotely operated vehicle (ROV). This 20,000 ft rated vehicle, designed and built by Phoenix, was used to map, locate, and recover Titan submersible debris at a depth of 12,500 feet. This was a follow…

04 Oct 2023

Van Oord Set to Kick Off Cable Installation for Iberdrola's Baltic Eagle Offshore Wind Farm

Credit: Van Oord

Dutch offshore installation services company Van Oord is set to start the cable installation works on Iberdrola's Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm in Germany."After Van Oord’s heavy lift installation vessel Svanen completed installation of all fifty monopiles for Iberdrola Deutschland’s Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm, Van Oord now continues installing transition pieces and starts cable installation. This week the inter-array cable loading onto Van Oord’s cable-laying vessel Nexus has commenced…

21 Jun 2023

Search for Missing Titanic Sub Focuses on Area Where Sounds Detected

(File photo: OceanGate Expeditions)

Rescuers searching for a missing submersible near the wreck of the Titanic on Wednesday concentrated their efforts on a remote area of the North Atlantic where a series of undersea noises have been detected, though officials cautioned the sounds may not have originated from the vessel.With estimates suggesting the air supply on board the submersible could run out by Thursday morning, an international coalition of rescue teams has swept a vast expanse of the ocean for signs of the Titan…

21 Mar 2023

Philippines Finds Sunken Fuel Tanker 3 Weeks after Spill

Credit: The Philippines Coast Guard

A leaking fuel tanker that sank off the central Philippines three weeks ago has been found using an underwater robot from Japan, a provincial governor said on Tuesday, as authorities sought more foreign help to address the oil spill.The discovery of MT Princess Empress, which was carrying about 800,000 liters (211,338 gallons) of industrial fuel oil when it capsized on Feb. 28 and eventually sank, was deemed crucial in stopping the spill, which reached shorelines in three provinces.

21 Jun 2023

Missing Titanic Submersible Update: Searchers Detect Subsea Sounds

Copyright chocolatefather/AdobeStock

Search teams detected underwater sounds while scanning the North Atlantic for a tourist submersible that vanished with five people aboard during a deep-sea voyage to the century-old wreck of the Titanic, the U.S. Coast Guard said early on Wednesday.The detection of the sounds by Canadian aircraft on Tuesday, day three of the search, was reported by the Coast Guard as the clock ticked down to the last 24 hours of the missing craft's presumed oxygen supply.Robotic undersea search operations were diverted to the area where the sounds seemed to originate…

03 Apr 2023

JF Subtech Charters Olympic Taurus Offshore Vessel. Deploys It for UXO Survey Gig

©JF Subtech

James Fisher Subtech has chartered the multipurpose offshore vessel Olympic Taurus from Olympic Subsea with plans to use it in the UK offshore energy industry.The Olympic Taurus has already been mobilized for work from Montrose Port, Aberdeenshire, and fitted with a work class remotely operated vehicle (WROV), in support of an unexploded ordnance (UXO) identification, survey, and disposal campaign in the North Sea with an unnamed client.The campaign is expected to end in early May.This is JF Subtech's second chartered vessel for 2023 after Edda Savanah…

22 Jun 2023

Titanic Sub Search: Debris Field Found, Oxygen Feared to Have Run Out

(File photo: OceanGate Expeditions)

The desperate search for a missing submersible near the wreck of the Titanic entered a critical juncture on Thursday when air was expected to run out for the five people aboard, but officials vowed to continue scouring the remote North Atlantic.A remotely operated vehicle deployed from a Canadian vessel to the ocean floor discovered a "debris field" near the Titanic, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Thursday morning on Twitter, adding that experts were "evaluating the information."Another…

Subscribe for
Maritime Reporter E-News

Maritime Reporter E-News is the maritime industry's largest circulation and most authoritative ENews Service, delivered to your Email five times per week