The NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) stated it had led a financing spherical with participation from Norwegian sovereign funding fund Investinor AS for Kongsberg Ferrotech AS, a Norwegian firm providing robotic options for the upkeep and restore of offshore infrastructure together with oil and gasoline services.
The assist will assist Kongsberg Ferrotech, whose choices have already been deployed by power giants, develop its attain throughout North Atlantic Treaty Group nations, in accordance with an announcement posted on NIF’s web site.
For pipelines, Kongsberg Ferrotech has developed a set of robotic options referred to as Nautilus to scale back inspection and restore time to only days.
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“With about 160,000-kilometer subsea pipelines around the globe, unmitigated leaks are inflicting environmental spills each day. A typical inspection and restore marketing campaign utilizing typical know-how can take from weeks to months – involving very costly vessels, guide divers and quite a few suppliers. The restore value alone runs into thousands and thousands of {dollars}. If manufacturing shut-down is required, the full value can simply attain tens of thousands and thousands”, the assertion stated.
With diver-free Nautilus, “most repairs might be carried out with out affecting the manufacturing, providing vital value financial savings and as much as 70 p.c discount in response time and C02 footprint”, the assertion stated.
It added, “Kongsberg Ferrotech allows in-situ restore of important submerged belongings – extending their life – by making a water-evacuated ‘dry habitat’ at depth. Its patented know-how can seal and evacuate water round areas to be repaired”.
“The corporate’s distinctive robotic platform – the place each inspection and restore are carried out in the identical operation and in the identical dive – can tackle a variety of subsea belongings from pipelines and risers to wind-turbine monopiles and service provider marine vessels”, the assertion stated. “When a defect is recognized, the robotic can ship a particularly tailor-made restore; both a ‘chilly’, non-metallic restore or a sizzling, 3D printed everlasting restore.
“With this know-how, true subsea asset rejuvenation turns into a actuality in a sustainable method, enabling steady upkeep instead of costly and time-consuming alternative.
“Kongsberg Ferrotech is working with world-leading power operators from PTTEP of Thailand to ADNOC, Aramco, Whole Energies and Petrobras to adapt the Kongsberg Ferrotech Expertise to optimally assist their operations.
“Moreover, since 2021, Kongsberg Ferrotech has efficiently accomplished a major joint trade venture with companions Equinor, Gassco, Shell Worldwide and SINTEF to develop superior 3D printing applied sciences for in situ, steel to steel, repairs of underwater belongings”.
NIF senior affiliate Ben Balmforth commented, “Kongsberg Ferrotech is already driving long-term resilience in strategically important sectors. We’re excited for the corporate to broaden its attain throughout the Alliance, enabling safe, cost-effective, and never-before-possible restore and upkeep for important infrastructure”.
Final January the Baltic Sea NATO Allies Summit dedicated to intensifying efforts in defending power and different important undersea infrastructure, citing the environmental risk of what the Allies say is a “shadow fleet” of Russian oil tankers, in addition to threats of sabotage.
In Might NATO’s Crucial Undersea Infrastructure Community gathered civilian and navy authorities, trade stakeholders and specialists from throughout the alliance to debate “modern approaches to detecting suspicious actions and securing important undersea belongings, together with by means of new sensing and monitoring applied sciences”, in accordance with a NATO assertion.
To contact the writer, e mail jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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