COSL wraps up Arctic seismic survey

China’s marine seismic company COSL has completed what it says is China’s first geophysical exploration in Arctic waters.

To make it a bit clearer, it is not that China has somehow managed to expand its territorial claims to the Arctic Circle, but rather, the news is that this is the first Chinese vessel to carry out such a survey in the area.

COSL had deployed its 12-streamer seismic vessel “HYSY 720” which carried out seismic data acquisition over two blocks in the Barents Sea.

After a hundred days of surveying, the operation was wrapped up on Tuesday, August 9.

While COSL does not reveal the name of the client, nor the exact location of the surveys conducted, The Barents Observer reported in May that the client was the Russian oil company Rosneft, which hired COSL for the seismic shoot in the Russian sector of the Barents Sea. The vessel’s AIS data shown by MarineTraffic supports these claims.

In a statement on Tuesday, COSL acknowledged the struggle oilfield services sector is undergoing, pressured by low oil prices. In response to that, the Chinese firm said it was accelerating its ‘going out’ strategy.

By ‘Going Out’ COSL said it was working towards extending its reach outside of China into the international oilfield services market as well. COSL said it is now deriving 40% of its revenue from the overseas market, with its seismic vessels having worked in the New Zealand, the Middle East, and the Far East.

Offshore Energy Today Staff