Funding an Upgrade of the Deep-Sea ROV
The University of Bergen has been granted funding to upgrade the deep-sea ROV Ægir 6000. The upgrade is important to extend the systems lifespan, add important new functionality and improve operational efficiency.
The remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Ægir 6000 has been a crucial tool across various marine disciplines, including geology, geophysics, biology, microbiology, and oceanography.
It has competed a total of 650 dives exploring depths ranging from 100 to 5000 meters.
– It is great news that the Research Council of Norway has awarded funding for the upgrade of this sole and important research infrastructure, says Jon Hellevang R&D Manager in GCE Ocean Technology.
An Upgrade for the Coming Decade
Ægir was first put in service in 2015 and engaged in mission for approximately 150 days per year on average.
An upgrade of the ROV and associated infrastructure is now needed to expand its possibilities and ensure it continued operation with extraordinary reliability.
The ROV was funded by the Research Council of Norway’s research infrastructure programme in 2014. The project has applied for about NOK 67 million for the upgrade, with the University of Bergen as project owner and the Institute of Marine Research as partner.
GCE Ocean Technology has supported the project, and this upgrade was one of the main recommendations in our report “Seabed minerals – Test infrastructure” that was handed over to the Norwegian Ministry of Energy last year.
– State-of-the-art infrastructure and close interdisciplinary collaboration will be important to advance deep sea research in the years to come. This project will be important to contribution to continue and expand this important research activity, Hellevang finishes.
Contact Information
About
Ægir 6000 is a national research infrastructure used to explore the Norwegian deep sea areas, capable of operating down to 6000 meters water depth.
Used for exploring, sampling and deploying instruments and experiments at deep sea study areas, including under the ice covered parts of the Arctic Ocean.
Designed for operation from both RVs G.O. Sars and Kronprins Haakon, deployed together with a 1000m+ tether management system.
