$OPTT Especially suited for the offshore wind energy market, the Saab Seaeye Cougar XT Compact robotic vehicle has been chosen for Taiwan’s huge offshore wind farm development.
Taiwan’s Metal Industries Research and Development Centre (MIRDC) will train ROV pilots to assist in the development and maintenance of the turbines’ underwater structures.
The training will be undertaken by MIRDC at the Maritime Technology Innovation Centre created by the Bureau of Energy and the Ministry of Economic Affairs for the cultivation of national offshore wind energy talents.
Created for currents
Created for challenging environmental conditions inherent in shallow water operations the Seaeye low-profile 300m rated Cougar XT Compact is specially designed to minimise the effect of current, with a reduced frame size, buoyancy and weight — and a thinner 17mm tether cable that reduces the effect of drag.
Its six powerful thrusters hold the Cougar steady in strong cross currents and allow it to operate with precise manoeuvrability around structures whilst handling a wide array of equipment that can include cameras, sonar, tracking systems and manipulators.
MIRDC’s Cougar XT Compact comes with a Kongsberg colour zoom camera, Blueview multibeam sonar, Tritec SeaKing sidescan sonar, Cygnus ultrasonic thickness gauge, CP contact probe and a four-function manipulator. It also comes as a free-swimming option and has its own 16 ft control cabin.
At the Maritime Technology Innovation Centre, the offshore wind energy training courses organised by MIRDC will provide training and certification in Taiwan and for the Asia Pacific region.
Here's some older OPT news that may have some significance to the above news.
by oceanpowertech | Feb 28, 2020 | News
Today we were excited to announce that we have signed a letter of intent with Taiwan-based BAP Precision, Inc. (“BAP”) to provide PowerBuoy® joint surveillance solutions for government agency contract pursuits for policing territorial waters.
Groundbreaking Carbon-Free Autonomous Subsea Vehicle Residency Solution Advances
Ocean Power Technologies, Modus Seabed Intervention & Saab Seaeye Project Seeks U.S. Government Funding
MONROE TOWNSHIP, N.J., March 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTT), a leader in innovative and cost-effective ocean energy solutions, today announced that it is working on a groundbreaking solution for carbon-free subsea autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) residency – long-term, persistent deployment without support from manned vessels – with joint development partners Modus Seabed Intervention and Saab Seaeye.
Ocean Power Technologies’ PB3 PowerBuoy® wave energy converter is pictured with innovative single point mooring integrating power and data transmission connected to a subsea battery solution and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) charging station. Developed with Modus Seabed Intervention utilizing a Saab Seaeye Sabertooth AUV, the concept has been submitted for U.S. government development and demonstration project funding consideration.
“We believe a self-contained system powered by an OPT PowerBuoy® and exempt from existing ocean infrastructure has the potential to revolutionize the industrial use of AUVs and make long-term residency a cost-effective reality,” said George Kirby, OPT President and Chief Executive Officer.
“Modus Seabed Intervention’s experience with advanced technology development efforts in subsea docking with Saab Seaeye’s market-leading hybrid AUV (HAUV) enables autonomous offshore operations and we believe it is a natural fit for our environmentally sound PowerBuoy® ocean power and communications technology,” Kirby added. “We’re looking forward to working together to further support the growing offshore electrification market.”
Remote operation without the need for surface vessel support or complex power and data umbilical cable systems to offshore platforms or land has the potential to offer tremendous savings over operations that would otherwise require manned vessels – including long-term environmental monitoring, frequent subsea equipment integrity inspections, and interaction with seafloor assets.
This novel system is designed for carbon-free autonomous offshore operations with the OPT PowerBuoy® power and communications platform at its core. Via an innovative integrated mooring and subsea power/data transmission cable, a PowerBuoy® can provide carbon-free power to a seabed docking station to recharge an autonomous underwater vehicle while enabling secure data transmission to and from shore-based operations located anywhere in the world.
The autonomous resident AUV system concept has been jointly submitted for U.S. government development and demonstration project funding consideration.
