Subsea module sinks to seabed off Australia due to crane incident

A subsea module, associated umbilical lines and a crane wire have sunk to the bottom of the sea offshore Australia due to a wire failing on the main crane of a vessel.

UK-headquartered energy services provider Expro reported that on September 19 an incident occurred in Australian waters in which the wire failed on the main crane of a third-party-owned vessel while it was suspending the subsea module of Expro’s vessel-deployed lightwell intervention (LWI) system.

At the time of the failure, the subsea module was suspended approximately 15 meters above the seabed. As a result, the subsea module, associated umbilical lines, and the severed crane wire descended to the seabed.

Luckily, no personnel were injured during the incident and an initial ROV survey has confirmed that the equipment came to rest at a safe location on the seabed.

Expro has suspended vessel-deployed LWI operations and is working with the relevant stakeholders and independent experts to assess the incident and plan the recovery operation.

According to the company, the plan is to conduct a thorough investigation of the incident and provide additional information, including the financial impacts of the incident, as part of its quarterly reporting process.

Expro will also evaluate LWI service delivery alternatives and then determine a path forward for its vessel-deployed LWI business, focusing on how sustainable risk-adjusted returns can be achieved.

“The safety and wellbeing of people and the environment remains core to all activities at Expro, and we are thankful that there were no injuries or release of wellbore hydrocarbons reported in connection with this recent incident,” said Michael Jardon, CEO of Expro.

“While the introduction of Expro’s vessel-deployed LWI system has been characterized by start-up and commissioning delays and several issues with the third party-owned vessel and vessel-related equipment, customer interest in cost-effective subsea interventions and vessel-deployed LWI solutions remains strong.”

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