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has eight thrusters for propulsion and in cooperation with the UK’s Heriot- totype charging station, contactless stability. It’s already been tested at 370 Watt University. Testing included au- charging and large-capacity optical meters in a fjord near Trondheim. The tomated docking of the AUV to a pro- communication operations.

next step is deployment from an Equi- nor designed docking station at the operator’s Åsgard ? eld, initially on a tether, where it can recharge its batter- ies and pick up tools.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries has launched a UK subsidiary, Kawasaki

Subsea (UK), based in Aberdeen, that is focusing its efforts on developing

AUVs for oil and gas pipeline inspec- tion and later maintenance. A prototype of its vehicle, called SPICE (submarine pipeline inspection with close eyes), was tested at the now closed Underwa- ter Center in Fort William in 2017 and is due to be commercially launched in 2020, with control software developed

March/April 2019 OFFSHORE ENGINEER 37 32-49 OE 2019.indd 37 4/15/2019 11:41:25 AM