ROVOP Reinforces US Ops with New Appointments

Remotely operated vehicle service provider ROVOP has bolstered its US team after winning contracts worth around $19 million (£15 million) including a two-year deal with an undisclosed Houston-based company.

Euan Tait has been appointed as president of the company’s US operations, ROVOP Inc, while Katarina Tehlirian takes up the post of VP business development.

Both will be based at ROVOP’s Houston hub with Tait taking over from Wayne Betts who is moving across to establish ROVOP’s operations in Brazil.

Tait is a member of ROVOP’s board and will continue his role as commercial director while heading up the US operations with the support of general manager, Neil Francis, in the western region.

Tehlirian, who joins ROVOP from Subsea 7, has business development experience in the US subsea sector and has previously worked with DOF Subsea and Canyon Offshore.

Steven Gray, chief executive officer at ROVOP, said: “This is a great start to Q2 in 2017. The growth in our US team strongly positions ROVOP for further growth in the region while the substantial new long-term contracts we’ve won demonstrates that, in a challenging market, our industry is changing and becoming more efficient, using technology and new working practices to lower cost and risk.”

ROVOP’s latest contract wins include a two-year contract with a Houston-based oil & gas engineering company and a five-year contract with a European power cable installer. The firm has also secured a three-year contract with Centrica to provide ROV services to the UK based oil & gas operator. The agreement will see ROVOP support Centrica across multiple work scopes including drill support, decommissioning, and inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM).

In addition, ROVOP is preparing to execute innovative platform-based asset life extension work for a UK operator which will see the company bring its operational experience and skill to the partnership to assist in maximizing hydrocarbon recovery.

ROVOP’s operations in the GoM includes working on a project that has involved deploying mattresses at a record rate. The company has also recently completed an inspection project with another system, with additional project works upcoming.