GSP Prince provides survey services & support for the South Stream project. The operations performed from GSP Prince covered by now about a half of the 900-kilometer long route with most of the South Stream pipeline route lying at depths of over 2 kilometers.
A record reduction in time has been achieved in bottom profiling while maintaining a persistent high quality of the data collected. It only took to GSP Prince’s on-board personnel 35 minutes to record an underwater sound velocity profile of a 1,730-meter deep section of the Black Sea. This result surpasses the previous record high for sound velocity profiling of the water column, which measured 1,563 meters and was set by the National Data Buoy Center with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The survey operations include exploration of the bottom sections and of the subsea strata using the HUGIN 1000 for 3000 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle. GSP Prince’s advanced technical features allowed the survey to be performed using a fast and economical method of recording underwater sound velocity with the aid of the compact high-speed UnderwaySV winch developed by Oceanscience (USA) and the RapidSV underwater sound velocity recording profiler made by Valeport of the UK.
An innovation to the bottom profiling method employed, has been the use, in combination with the RapidSV sound velocity rate sensor, of the cantilever-type spool that makes it possible for the probe to plummet practically in the free-descent mode as the cable unwinds. The sensor descends in the water at the speed of up to 5 m/sec and reaches the depth of 1,000 meters in a mere three to four minutes time. At the same time, the winch has a high wind-up speed, which makes it possible to raise the sensor quickly. As a result, a record-breaking reduction in time has been achieved in bottom profiling while maintaining a persistent high quality of the data collected.
The beneficiary of the deep sea survey, the Russian engineering company PeterGas LLC, declared more than satisfied with the GSP’s vessel performance, the speed of data collection and with the high quality of the data obtained.
GSP Prince, IMR & Survey information:
GSP Prince, IMR & Survey DP2 Offshore Support Vessel specializes in performing sub-sea duties such as ROV operations (pipeline/route survey), bottom mapping, sub-sea installation works, diving and intervention support, mother vessel for AUV/UUV operations, geo-technical investigation survey. The vessel meets the latest environmental criteria while ensuring acoustically quiet operations at survey speeds. The vessel supports the marine operations and offshore construction activities DP2 Divers & ROV Survey Offshore Support Vessel, DnV +1A1, SF, E0, DYNPOS AUTR, CLEAN, COMF-C3-V3, HELDK-SH, NAUT OSV (A), DK(+), ICE-C Built in 2009, Baatbygg Shipyard, Norway. GSP Prince meets the latest environmental criteria while ensuring acoustically quiet operations at survey speeds. GSP Prince carried out operations within key regional offshore construction projects such as the DLS Project (Black Sea, Russian Federation, the ultimate client being Gazprom), Akcakoca Gas Field Development Project (Black Sea, Turkey, for TPAO) and Galata Project (Black Sea, Bulgaria for Melrose Resources).
[mappress] World Maritime News Staff, January 3, 2012; Image: GSP Offshore