Remota hand-picked to operate and manage newbuild unmanned surface vessel

Norway-headquartered Remota – a joint venture company established by DeepOcean, Solstad Offshore, and Østensjø – has been contracted by USV, a company that invests in and owns unmanned surface vessels (USVs), to operate and manage remotely controlled offshore operations for its first newbuild USV, which has the potential to significantly curb carbon emissions during subsea inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) work.

This vessel, which will enter service in 2025, will be remotely controlled from Remota’s Remote Operations Centre in Haugesund, Norway. During operations, both the USV vessel crew and ROV operators will be co-located in this centre.

Sveinung Soma, CEO of Remota, commented: “Today, Remota operates multiple ROVs from our Remote Operations Centre, and we have recently started operating underwater drones too. Expanding Remota’s service offering to USVs is a natural next step.”

Remota was set up to fast-track the adoption of remotely managed services in a bid to drive down operating costs and emissions for the marine and offshore industries. According to the company, it will play “a key role” in the development of the USV, especially within remote control functionalities, communication technologies, and maritime regulations, in addition to operating the vessel from shore.

It is estimated that the newbuild USV can reduce CO2 emissions by more than 90 per cent compared to a conventional offshore vessel when conducting subsea IMR operations through a combination of low weight, hybrid-electric propulsion system with a battery package, remote operations, and autonomous features.

Furthermore, Remota outlines that USV’s vessel will go on charter for DeepOcean in 2025. It will be utilised for subsea IMR and survey work in the offshore renewables and oil and gas industries. The vessel will be capable of operating offshore for up to 30 days without charging or refuelling. It will be equipped with a work ROV that is capable of operating down to 1,500 metres of water depth.

“The company can help operators to become remote-ready and operate on demand from its Remote Operations Centres. Remota can also operate its customers’ vessels. It is a cost-efficient way of reducing costs, energy consumption, and emissions, and increase efficiency in operations and improve safety for personnel,” concluded Soma. 

Recently, Remota secured agreements with ferry operators that aim to develop remote marine operations and semi-autonomous and autonomous operations of ships.