Corcovado Geosub and Kongberg Discovery sign multimillion-dollar seabed monitoring deal

Corcovado Geosub Ltda – the Brazilian specialist supplier of survey, ROV and AUV services – has signed a multimillion-dollar contract with Kongsberg Discovery. The deal for advanced seabed monitoring equipment furthers Corcovado’s established relationship with Kongsberg, having conducted high resolution mapping of significant areas of the seafloor with the HUGIN AUV.

The agreement – for delivery of cNODE Sensor Logging Transponders – will allow Corcovado to conduct long-term environmental monitoring for seabed horizontal and vertical displacement, during both carbon capture and storage, and oil and gas recovery.

Stronger market position

Monitoring for changes to the elevation of the seabed during carbon capture is essential to mitigate the risk of the stored gas escaping due to over-pressurisation. And this latest order will put Corcovado at the forefront of serving the Brazilian market for seabed displacement monitoring.

Donizeti Carneiro, Corcovado’s Commercial Director, says the ground-breaking precision offered by Kongsberg Sensor Logging Transponders in the deep-water offshore environment is exactly what is required to deliver vital information to clients to ensure optimal decisions during production and carbon capture.

Precise ocean intelligence

“The cNODE Sensors will be deployed for up to 10 years at a time, providing high quality data that will be recovered every three to six months by acoustic telemetry,” said Carneiro. “The sensors chosen within the cNODE Sensor Logging Transponders range include high accuracy digiquartz crystals and internal barometers for continuous calibration, providing the highest quality and precision in the data.” 

Spencer Collins, Kongsberg Discovery’s VP Sales said the demand for high-specification underwater positioning transponders for seabed monitoring “reflects the market demand in ensuring environmental safety during offshore operations”. 

He added: “Kongsberg Discovery’s key mission is protecting people and planet and, in providing the technology to Corcovado, we enable sustainable management, monitoring and development of the ocean space.”

Kongsberg Discovery’s cNODE family of transponders are market-proven medium frequency units for highly accurate underwater acoustic positioning and data links, while µPAP is a small and compact acoustic positioning system for tracking ROV’s, tow fish, divers, and any other subsea target at ranges up to several thousand metres.