Al Gihaz Contracting, part of Saudi-based Al Gihaz Holding, has completed the acquisition of assets, intellectual property and the management systems of subsea trenching company Enshore Subsea.

Marine Institute of Ireland, in collaboration with PLOCAN, has awarded €240,000 in funding for two PhD scholarships that will seek to address challenges related to ocean observing systems and advanced ocean technology development.

Norwegian vessel owner and operator Volstad Maritime has secured a contract with subsea services provider DeepOcean for the Volantis vessel. Under the contract, the subsea construction vessel Volantis will continue the work in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico region throughout 2021, with options for 2022 attached.

Marine technology provider Seatronics, an Acteon company, has appointed Subsea Specialist as its re-seller for the Caribbean region.

Offshore Energy Exhibition and Conference (OEEC) will take place at RAI Amsterdam on Tuesday 26 and Wednesday 27 October 2021. The 14th edition of OEEC will have a physical exhibition floor and content programme combined with an online event and matchmaking environment. As of today it’s possible to book your stand directly on the floorplan.

Based on the previously announced Conditional Letter of Award, Maersk Drilling has been awarded a contract from Tullow Ghana Ltd. for the provision of the ultra-deepwater drillship Maersk Venturer and additional services for a development drilling campaign at the TEN and Jubilee fields offshore Ghana. The contract commenced in April 2021, with an estimated duration of around four years. The estimated contract value is approximately USD 370m, excluding additional services provided and potential performance bonuses.

Phoenix International Holdings, Inc. (Phoenix), a worldwide leader in underwater solutions, announces the promotion of Troy Magness to Diving Operations Manager of our Louisiana location following the retirement of one of our founding members Tom Bailey. In his new role, Troy will be responsible for overseeing offshore commercial diving activities and personnel including developing and managing project plans, scheduling, logistics, and tracking professional development, all the while ensuring that safety remains a top priority.

NOAA and the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) signed a 10-year agreement today to partner on ways to improve how uncrewed systems (UxS) are used to collect important ocean observation data and augment NOAA’s operational capabilities. The agreement provides a framework for collaborating with NOAA scientists and UxS operators on projects to further UxS research, development and operations.

An up-and-coming name in the subsea survey sector has announced another key appointment who will be central to the next chapter of the company’s ambitious growth journey. Carlo Pinto has been recruited as Chief Commercial Officer at Sulmara Subsea, bringing to the newly created role more than 20 years of experience in a range of technical, commercial and management roles. Based in Milan, he will add strength to the company’s commercial offering internationally.

Awarded jointly by both societies, the Captain Don Walsh Award for Ocean Exploration is presented annually to an individual who has made an outstanding, sustained, international contribution to the development, application, or propagation of marine/ underwater technology toward the advancement of ocean exploration. The award is named in honour of Captain (Ret) Don Walsh, an accomplished American oceanographer, explorer, retired naval officer, and marine policy specialist. He and Jacques Piccard were aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste on January 23, 1960 when it made a record descent into the Mariana Trench, which is the deepest point of the world's oceans. Dr. Edie Widder, an MTS member, won the inaugural award in 2020.

Maersk Drilling has secured a contract with Shell Malaysia for the 7th generation drillship Maersk Viking to drill four development wells at the Gumusut-Kakap project offshore Malaysia. The contract is expected to commence in December 2021, with an estimated duration of 150 days. The firm contract value is approximately USD 34m, including a mobilisation fee. The contract includes five additional one-well options for work offshore Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei Darussalam.

The team behind Oceanology International are putting together the final touches to Oi Connect – the leading digital meetings platform for the ocean tech and science community.

Hydramec have designed and built a bespoke Launch and Recovery System (LARS) for Louis Dreyfus Travocean which is being used to Launch their own purposely designed ROV, which will be put to in the wind energy sector.

Seanic Ocean Systems, a Centurion company providing subsea engineering services, has joined the U.S. Department of Energy-supported Testing Expertise and Access for Marine Energy Research (TEAMER) program.

Boston-based subsea robotics company Dive Technologies has entered into commercial partnership with Metron to offer fully autonomous seabed surveys.

Offshore energy services provider Helix Robotics Solutions partnered with UTEC Survey, an Acteon Group company, to support the recent installation of Simec Atlantis’ demonstration tidal turbine in Japan.

Scottish ROV specialist HPR ROV has signed a two-year agreement with Saudi-based Intelligent Energy Services (i-Energy) to act as its exclusive agent in the region.

VARD, one of the world’s major designers and shipbuilders of specialized vessels, is pleased to announce that it has secured contracts for the design and construction of three Service Operation Vessels (SOVs) for North Star Renewables in Scotland. The state-of-the-art hybrid trio will operate on the Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the North Sea.