KORTHOS / ECOSYSTEM / PRODUCT

Blue Essence

About

About Blue Essence

Blue Essence is a 12-metre uncrewed surface-vessel family operated from Fugro’s remote operations centres. The vessels carry hydrographic, geophysical and inspection sensors for pipeline, port, wind-farm and seabed surveys.

Configurations can launch and recover the Blue Volta electric ROV for close subsea inspection and light intervention. Satellite communications connect the vessel, ROV and shore team throughout the mission. Blue Essence vessels hold operating approvals in several jurisdictions and can remain at sea for up to two weeks.

Capabilities

Source-backed capabilities

  • Workflows: Autonomous Surface Vessel, Remote Survey USV
  • Remote and shared control

    Commercial deployment - 2024-01-01 - completed asset-integrity and seabed survey projects under remote control

    Source
  • Remote and shared control

    Claimed - 2021-04-28 - The system pairs uncrewed vessels with remote operations centres.

    Source
  • Autonomous surface transit

    Claimed - 2024-01-01 - operate as an uncrewed surface vessel for offshore marine projects

    Source

Timeline

  • Fugro Vaquita receives unrestricted UK coastguard approval

    2024-01-25 - Regulatory - Fugro announced Vaquita's Category 0 approval on January 25, 2024. The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency granted its highest approval level for autonomous vessels. The approval made Vaquita the largest fully remote USV with unrestricted access for projects farther offshore.

    Source
  • Blue Essence completes first fully remote offshore-wind ROV inspection

    2023-04-25 - Demonstration - Fugro completed the fully remote inspection at the Aberdeen offshore wind farm by April 25, 2023. The Blue Volta eROV inspected turbine structures while a hull-mounted sensor mapped the seabed. Vattenfall and ORE Catapult jointly funded the real-world technology demonstration.

    Source
  • Fugro completes first fully remote offshore inspection for TAQA

    2023-01-30 - Deployment - The inspection covered seabed mobility, pipeline depth, visual and cathodic-protection measurements within the 500-metre zone. The project inspected two platforms and more than 40 kilometres of pipeline off the Netherlands. Teams in the Netherlands and Aberdeen controlled Blue Essence and Blue Volta over satellite links without offshore survey personnel.

    Source
  • Blue Essence begins first European project from Rotterdam

    2021-11-10 - Deployment - Blue Essence began its first Netherlands project on November 10, 2021. The vessel left Rotterdam without personnel onboard and was controlled from an onshore centre over a satellite link. Fugro configured the system for offshore-asset inspection, construction support and hydrographic and geophysical surveys.

    Source
  • Fugro launches Blue Essence uncrewed vessel

    2021-04-28 - Product Launch - Blue Essence supports remote and autonomous offshore survey work. The system pairs uncrewed vessels with remote operations centres. The launch expanded Fugro uncrewed maritime survey capability.

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Context

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