A robotic arm of a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) attempts
to activate the Deepwater Horizon Blowout Preventer (BOP),
Thursday, April 22, 2010. In addition to the use of ROVs, the
unified command is mobilizing the Development Driller III, a
drilling rig that is expected to prepare for relief well drilling
operations, to stop the flow of oil that has been estimated at
leaking up to 1,000 barrels/42,000 gallons a day.
[Photo courtesy U.S. Coast Guard Eighth District External Affairs.]
Regardless of who really "owns" any particular ROV, all
of the undersea work was choreographed through a
Deepwater Horizon Response Command Center. From this
command center, tasks were doled out to several surface
motor vessels who actually "handled" the operation of each
ROV. For example, at one time during the early days of the
BP oil spill response, six ROVs were hovering around the
BOP, each tethered to their respective surface support ship.
These ROVs were equipped with video cameras and an
array of "hand" (more like claw) tools like wire cutters,
pliers, and "hot stabs." A hot stab is a metal connector that
can plug directly into a hydraulic system for subsequent
control from the topside support ship.
In the fleet of over 700 ships that responded to the
Viking Poseidon left Ulsteinvik to be fitted out with a
250 tonne offshore crane just before Christmas 2009.
On January 13, 2010 the vessel was delivered to
Eidesvik Of fshore. [Photograph courtesy of Ulstein Group.]
58 SERVO 07.2010
MC252 leak, it's tough to single out one support ship over
another. But the Viking Poseidon (Ulstein SX121) could be
considered an exception to that statement. And there is no
mistaking her in the Gulf — she's the big orange giant.
Viking Poseidon is a highly specialized deepwater
marine vessel owned and operated by Veolia ES Industrial
Services. The Poseidon's design technology and equipment
made it particularly well-suited for handling this deepwater
crisis. Ironically, the Viking Poseidon had just been delivered
to Galveston Bay, TX in February 2010 and had completed
its first deepwater job in the Gulf of Mexico on March 26,
2010.
Mr. Michel Gourvennec, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Veolia Environmental Services North America,
stated, "The Poseidon clearly complements the capabilities
of our expanding Marine Services division. As the market
for deepwater capabilities — particularly in the Gulf of
Mexico — continues to grow, the Poseidon becomes a
strategic asset that will put Veolia at the forefront of the
marine services industry. We are happy to add her to our
fleet."
The Poseidon is the largest Ulstein X-Bow vessel in the
world. It was built by Ulstein Verft for Eidesvik Offshore in
Norway during 2008. It is a 130 meter long, 25 meter wide
vessel with a deck area of 1,720 square meters. The
Poseidon has a maximum speed of 14 knots and can
accommodate a crew of up to 106. Its advanced features —
which allow it to deploy heavier loads and operate further
offshore — include two work class ROVs with launch and
recovery systems (LARS), an HMC-250T active heave
compensated knuckle boom crane, and a 15 ton electro-hydraulic deck crane with folding boom.
Luckily, the Viking Poseidon was immediately available
to the Deepwater Horizon Response Command Center. In
fact, it was the Viking Poseidon that was tasked with
lowering Tophat into place next to MC252's broken main
riser pipe on May 11, 2010.
ROV for Hire
Other than guiding Tophat into place, other ROVs were
being used for several, much more specialized tasks:
Spraying. One of the chief deterrents against oil spills
has traditionally been the application of a dispersant. This
chemical — when sprayed on oil — causes it to be
disassociated into smaller droplets. Unlike a surface oil spill,
however, the leak from MC252 was so deep in the ocean
that an ROV had to be deployed directly next to each oil
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