UK offshore solutions provider Modus has secured a contract with Equinor for the provision of underwater intervention drone missions at the Johan Sverdrup field in the Norwegian North Sea. - Splash247

The contract, which the company said is a world-first, will run from 2023 to mid-2024, utilising one of Modus’ Saab Sabertooth hovering autonomous underwater vehicles (HAUVs) resident in the field for a significant period. The offshore operations will involve in-field autonomous surveys and light interventions with over-the-horizon control from Modus’ command and control centre at its head office in Darlington.

Modus has been working on subsea residency with its fleet of HAUVs for some time and has accelerated its development in this area following a trial scope with Equinor in November 2021. As per modus, residency, where the vehicle remains docked with a subsea docking station for charging and data transfer, will provide carbon-zero survey and IMR solutions that will improve sustainability, efficiency, safety and decision-making in the sector.

In recent months we have been transforming our business to focus exclusively on the next generation of subsea survey and IMR solutions and this project has been a key strategic target for us. Equinor is leading the way on tech solutions as part of its commitment to a low-carbon future and this contract has the potential to drive a paradigm shift in the industry.

Ash Sheppard, Modus’ chief strategy officer