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 completed a total of 650 dives, exploring depths ranging from 100 to 5,000 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 at 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 its continued operation with extraordinary reliability.
The ROV was funded by the Research Council of Norway’s research infrastructure program 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 is one of the main recommendations in its 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.
