Reach Subsea ASA announced that for the past 18 months, it has been developing new and future-proof, sustainable solutions for subsea services. The project, named Reach Remote, is carried out in cooperation with industrial partners Kongsberg Maritime and Massterly, and is also supported by a grant from Innovation Norway. The first stage of Reach Remote is to introduce Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) dedicated to survey, inspection, and light repair projects. These USVs will serve as mobile power banks, data centres and communication modules for underwater ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles), with both the USVs and ROVs operated from an onshore control centre. Features for both real time operator control and autonomous operations will be incorporated, as well as hybrid modes blending remote and semi-autonomous control. The goal is to be in the market with the first two USVs in 2022, with the ambition of providing a full portfolio of subsea services from a low-emission, cost-effective remote and autonomous fleet by 2025. The low-emission, cost-effective subsea services which will be offered by Reach Remote are viewed with great interest from both offshore wind farm operators and oil and gas asset owners. Reach Remote will be a great enabler, building on framework agreements already in place to position Reach as a preferred supplier of survey, inspection, and light repair services to the fast-growing offshore wind industry. It will also be key to providing services to other markets, such as aquaculture, subsea mining, and environmental surveillance. Technology is enabling a radical redesign of how ROV operations are performed: shifting from a capital- and personnel-intensive setup operated from larger, energy-intensive offshore vessels towards a lean remote and autonomous platform, with certified personnel located onshore. Reach Subsea’s operational competence – together with Kongsberg Maritime’s advanced technologies and Massterly’s pioneering efforts in autonomous maritime operations – is vital to unlocking this opportunity. Currently, Reach provides its subsea services from six vessels. A typical Reach project will involve some 30-50 personnel onboard a subsea vessel operating under strict HSEQ regimes. With Reach Remote, the same project can be executed with a much smaller, more fuel-efficient vessel and one third of the personnel, who will be located onshore without exposure to offshore operational risks. This is revolutionary in terms of cost efficiency and enhanced safety and will drastically reduce the CO2 footprint of this type of operation. The key benefits of Reach Remote, compared to equivalent solutions using a full-scale subsea vessel, are: More than 90% reduction in CO2 and NOx emissions; Virtual elimination of the personnel risk associated with offshore operations; and Significant reductions in the cost of subsea survey and inspection services. Financing of the construction part of Reach Remote is being evaluated and may involve new equity, new debt, industrial partnerships, or a combination thereof.