The final quarter of 2024 and start of 2025 was bustling with subsea project updates and news. This compilation provides a glimpse at the latest subsea contracts and the technologies and strategies being utilized for offshore oil and gas operations.
North Sea
Subsea7 assessing tieback needs for Fram Sør project
In January 2025, Equinor awarded Subsea7 a front-end engineering and design study for the Fram Sør development in the Norwegian North Sea. This will deliver the technical definition of the proposed subsea project prior to Equinor and its partners taking final investment decision. The award includes an option for a subsequent EPCI contract covering installation of the subsea structures, umbilicals, risers and flowlines. Offshore installation activities would follow during 2026-2028. The Fram Sør area is 10-30 km north of the Troll C platform. The facilities would be connected to existing infrastructure serving Fram and Troll C.
Corinth supplying pipes for Bestla, Bittern tiebacks
Subsea7 contracted Corinth Pipeworks on Dec. 11 to manufacture steel pipes for two field developments in the North Sea. The OKEA-operated Bestla project is a 13-km two-well subsea tieback to the Brage field platform to the north. Corinth will supply 12.5 km of 14-inch, high-frequency welded (HFW) steel pipes. In the UK central North Sea, the Bittern project calls for the manufacture of about 22 km of HFW steel pipes for a 12-inch water injection pipeline, 190 km east of Aberdeen. It will replace the existing line to maintain reservoir pressure support for the remaining life of the Bittern field. Subsea7 will install the lined pipeline this year, along with subsea structures and tie-ins at both Bittern and the host Triton FPSO.
NSC, PlanSea get grant to expand AI tool to subsea decommissioning
The Scottish Funding Council awarded the National Subsea Centre (NSC) a grant on Dec. 10 to develop a subsea decommissioning optimization software AI demonstrator with marine logistics AI technology specialist PlanSea. According to the NSC, large-scale and complex subsea decommissioning requires optimization to secure a cost-effective and resource-efficient outcome. Over the next 10 years, the NSC expects UK offshore E&P companies to spend £21 billion (US$26.7 billion) on decommissioning. The NSC has been working with PlanSea to adopt AI for marine logistics. They will now deploy the technology to address the needs of the subsea decommissioning sector. Their goal is to give decision-makers the capability to accurately simulate the cause-effect relationship between different strategies and relevant KPIs, with the resulting AI tool set to start trials in second-quarter 2025.
DeepOcean providing long-term subsea support to Equinor
Equinor awarded DeepOcean an eight-year subsea inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) contract on Nov. 21 to support its operations in Norway and elsewhere in Europe, starting from 2027. DeepOcean will allocate a large team of subsea engineers, a subsea tool pool, remote operations technologies and a newbuild vessel that the company will charter from Rem Offshore. The Rem Ocean will have dual-fuel engines that can operate on bio-methanol and biodiesel as well as a battery energy storage system and regenerative energy systems. Also onboard will be an autonomous inspection drone. The vessel’s design is a collaborative effort between DeepOcean, Rem Offshore, Skipsteknisk and other suppliers. It will feature a 250-mt electrical crane, two electric work ROVs in hangars, a 1,000-sq-m outside deck area and an inside hangar area of 350 sq m.
West Africa
Saipem, TechnipFMC ink Bonga North subsea contracts
In December 2024, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Co. (SNEPCo) and its partners took FID on the deepwater Bonga North development offshore Nigeria. TechnipFMC then secured a contract with SNEPCo to supply Subsea 2.0 production systems for the development. Shortly after that, SNEPCo awarded Saipem a subsea EPCI contract for the development. Bonga North, 130 km offshore, will be tied back to the Bonga field FPSO. Saipem will manage construction and installation of the risers, flowlines, subsea umbilicals and associated subsea structures for tying the wells back to the FPSO. Design and fabrication will take place locally, some involving Nigerian suppliers and subcontractors.
Gulf of Mexico
Shell proceeding with Phase 3 of Silvertip subsea project
Shell Offshore Inc. took FID Dec. 12 on the Phase 3 Silvertip subsea development in the US Gulf of Mexico. This will involve drilling two wells to recover resources of 17 MMboe. These will boost production at the Shell-operated Perdido spar in the Alaminos Canyon in 8,000 ft water depth. The new wells, in the Silvertip Frio reservoir (Shell, 40%; Chevron, 60%), will be tied into existing subsea infrastructure and should deliver up to 6,000 boe/d at peak rates. First production should follow in 2026. Subsea7 has EPCI responsibilities for the associated new production flowline and tie-ins, with work underway at the company’s offices in Houston. Offshore work will take place in 2026.
Subsea7 installing Monument-Shenandoah tieback
Beacon Offshore Energy booked Subsea7 Dec. 12 to handle subsea tieback operations for the Monument development in the US Gulf of Mexico (GoM). This will feature a high-pressure 27-km tieback to the Shenandoah floating production system in Walker Ridge Block 316 in water depths of up to 2,000 m. Subsea7's EPCI responsibilities cover equipment including subsea structures, umbilicals, production risers and flowlines. Project management and engineering work is due to start shortly at the company’s office in Houston, followed by offshore activities in 2026.
McDermott to assess subsea needs for Polok/Chinwol oil project
Repsol Exploración México awarded McDermott a front-end engineering design (FEED) contract Dec. 3 for its Polok and Chinwol oilfields development in the Gulf of Mexico. McDermott will perform design services for the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of the subsea, umbilicals, risers and flowlines package.
Brazil
Petrobras expands Fugro IRM work scope
Petrobras conferred a 175-day addendum to Fugro’s inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM) services contract for the Fugro Aquarius vessel offshore Brazil, according to a Dec. 18 Fugro news release. This will now extend to fully remote subsea inspection surveys of shallow-water facilities, and work was scheduled to start in January 2025. Fugro will deploy its Blue Essence uncrewed surface vessel and Blue Volta electric remotely operated vehicle (eROV) technology. It will be the first application of these systems by the company in the Americas, following projects offshore Australia, the UK and the Middle East. The combination is said to cut carbon emission by 95%, through dispensing with onsite personnel, while also lessening the risks associated with conventional offshore IRM operations. Fugro’s Remote Operations Center in Rio das Ostras will support the inspection program. The facility, close to Petrobras’ port of operations, can undertake a wide range of remote survey activities.
SLB OneSubsea, Petrobras ink contract for Búzios subsea boosting
SLB was awarded a contract by Petrobras Dec. 12, following a competitive tender, to its OneSubsea joint venture for two subsea raw seawater injection (RWI) systems to increase recovery from the Búzios field offshore Brazil. The subsea RWI systems aim to help increase the production of FPSO vessels, which are bottlenecked in their water injection capacities. Once operational, the RWI systems will reduce greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions per barrel of oil as they are a more efficient means of reservoir pressurization to increase recovery when compared with the conventional alternative of topside injection systems. Under the contract, SLB OneSubsea will provide two complete subsea RWI systems to support Petrobras’ P-74 and P-75 FPSOs, and they will each consist of a subsea seawater injection pump, umbilical system and topside variable speed drive. As part of this project, SLB OneSubsea says its multidisciplinary team in Brazil will provide technical support using AI-enabled Subsea Live services, including continuous condition monitoring and access to domain experts.
Middle East
Aramco awards Subsea7 contract offshore Saudi Arabia
Offshore Saudi Arabia, Aramco awarded Subsea7 new work on Dec. 12 under the parties’ long-term agreement. The workscope covers decommissioning of existing subsea facilities and EPCI of a new pipeline and subsea equipment at the Abu Safah field. Subsea7 will manage the project from its office in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, with support from branches in Dubai and Singapore. Offshore operations should take place in 2026.
Southeast Asia
DeepOcean adds subsea vessel to its fleet
DeepOcean signed a charter contract in early January with Dong Fang Offshore for the Orient Adventurer multipurpose subsea vessel. The vessel will join DeepOcean’s fleet from early 2026 until year-end 2027, with options for up to four further years. Orient Adventurer (ex-Polar Onyx) will work for the company globally providing offshore wind operations and maintenance, installation services, IMR, construction and recycling of offshore oil and gas infrastructure. At present, the vessel is supporting an offshore wind program in Southeast Asia. It is equipped with a 250-mt crane and a vertical lay system with a 275-mt capacity. DeepOcean plans to add two ROVS onboard in hangars and potentially an underdeck carousel capable of carrying and installing power cables.
