Woodside conducts first remote subsea inspection in U.S. waters
Written by Marine Log Staff
Photo courtesy of Woodside.
Australian-based Woodside Energy Group recently completed its first-ever remote subsea inspection in the United States, a move the company says improves safety, reduces costs, and enhances operational efficiency.
The campaign, which began in late May and remains ongoing, is also believed to be one of the first remote inspections approved by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) in the U.S.
Traditionally, subsea inspections in the Gulf of Mexico required teams of inspectors, engineers, and support personnel to be physically present offshore. By shifting to remote technology, Woodside has significantly reduced the number of personnel exposed to hazardous environments.
“Whether we are inspecting equipment, monitoring well integrity, or performing maintenance, doing these tasks enhances safety, reliability and operational efficiency,” said Principal Integrity Engineer Charina Choochert. “So we are thrilled that we have been able to take a significant step forward for subsea integrity management by transitioning to remote subsea inspections.”
The company partnered with contractor Wood to launch the remote subsea inspection and Underwater Inspection In Lieu of Drydocking campaigns. Previously, data was collected offline and could take months to upload into Woodside’s Integrity Data Management System. With the new system, inspection videos are reviewed in real time, allowing quicker responses to anomalies and the ability to re-inspect immediately if needed.
“Whereas reports would take up to six months for analysis, we can now review live recordings, identify anomalies, and take action quickly,” Choochert said. “It also means we can re-inspect in real time, and we don’t have to wait for the next inspection campaign. It’s just incredible that we can track findings on a day-to-day basis, and that to me is a huge win for innovation and efficiency.”
Woodside says the initiative not only reduces offshore personnel and related crew change downtime but also accelerates anomaly response times and improves overall reporting and cost savings.
Regulators in the Gulf, including ABS, have expressed support for the new approach.
“We’re really pleased that regulators like the American Bureau of Shipping have endorsed using remote inspections for large portions of the campaign,” said Robert Boothby, frontline engineering team lead. “This is one of the first approved remote inspections by the ABS in the US and the first ever by Woodside in the U.S.”
“It raises the game for operators in the Gulf and Woodside is proud to be leading the way,” Boothby added. “The value of this initiative for Woodside is that we are leaning into our commitment to have world-class operations focused on safety, efficiency and performance. And it’s just been incredible to see the advances that have been made over the past 20 years. The ability to review data sitting in an office over 300 miles from the inspection site is a testament to what’s possible for Woodside and the industry as a whole.”
“I really appreciate the collaboration between Woodside and Wood to further reduce our risk by removing people exposure, lowering inspection to remediation action cycle times, and improving inspection quality,” said Jim Siercks, Woodside operations manager. “The continued improvement and productive teamwork over the years has been great.”
