Swiss, Italian groups combine to support subsea pipeline construction, maintenance

Offshore staff

MILAN, Italy — Polyurethane field joint coatings provider Company Services Swiss SA (CSS) and Italian underwater engineering specialist Drafinsub have started a merger process.

They aim to establish a hub that would supply/perform integrated services concerning offshore infrastructures and underwater pipelines, ranging from pre-installation inspections to installation and maintenance and testing and commissioning.

The new holding company, CSS Drafinsub Holding, is headquarted in Chiasso, Switzerland, with operating bases in Genoa, Castelnuovo Bocca d’Adda and Sicily, and Johor, Malaysia, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and Mexico City.

Fabio Valentini, currently CEO of CSS SA, will be chairman with Drafinsub CEO Gianluca Passeri becoming managing director.

CSS Subsea supports companies including Saipem, MC Dermott, NPCC, L&T, Leighton and Subsea7. Over the past year, it has completed inspections on pipelines, installed protections for Prysmian cables, performed work for the Capo Cassiopea expansion for Enimed Sicilia (Saipem/Eni), and conducted trenching to protect connections at depths of up to 660 m.

Its underwater services include trenching, monitoring for surveys, deepwater and shallow-water diving for construction and repair work, and use of ROVs, all supported from multi-purpose vessels in synergy with Go Offshore. 

Drafinsub has conducted deepwater operations in Lake Garda, northern Italy, to ensure the safety of underwater pipelines.

11.27.2023