Subsea geodata specialist Sulmara has helped Bayou Bend CCS generate data from a towed-streamer uncrewed surface vessel (USV) during a high-resolution geophysical survey at the Bayou Bend carbon capture and storage project in Texas.
Subsea geodata specialist Sulmara has helped Bayou Bend CCS generate data from a towed-streamer uncrewed surface vessel (USV) during a high-resolution geophysical survey at the Bayou Bend carbon capture and storage project in Texas.
Bayou Bend CCS commissioned Sulmara to conduct an archaeological and geohazard assessment of the proposed Bayou Bend CCS pipeline route from the landfall to the future offshore platform locations.
Sulmara utilised an electric WAM-V 16 USV for the offshore data acquisition to help significantly lower the overall carbon footprint of the project by reducing the number of diesel-burning vessels offshore, as well as shortening the time required to conduct the survey.
Sulmara project manager Darius Rivera said: ‘The quality of the data gathered is some of the best we’ve seen from a USV. The quality of information, as well as the operability of the equipment and relationship that has been developed, has been key to the project’s success.’
The project utilised the SpaceX-backed Starlink satellite system to ensure strong communications between the shore and the USV.
Rivera added: ‘With the survey area around 15 km from shore, we integrated the WAM-V with Starlink to achieve higher speed communications with the mobile remote command centre. This is the first time we have been able to go beyond the 3 km mark with this size USV, ensuring improved quality of data and reducing the time needed to collect the information when compared to a conventional survey vessel.’
