Page 24: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Mar/Apr 2022)

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CTO IN FOCUS EDWARD HEEREMA, ALLSEAS

Allseas Collector in the North Sea

All photos courtesy Allseas

Spirit’s 48,000 ton topsides lift capacity at 72,000 ton sea mining. The company acquired the 228m-long Vitoria topsides lift capacity. This project was “frozen” in 2020 10000 drillship in 2020 to convert it into a polymetal- due to the depressed market. But that’s not to say it’s lic nodule collection vessel, in partnership with The Met- permanently shelved, says Edward. “We did decide to als Company (TMC, formerly DeepGreen Metals Inc.). ? nalize the design,” he says. “We’ve done the complete TMC’s goal is harvesting polymetallic nodules, containing basic design so that when it is required we could move high grades of nickel, manganese, copper and cobalt, from relatively quickly, do the detailed design in a year or so, the Clarion Clipperton Zone in the Paci? c Ocean. These and start building. We wanted to be able to say to our- will be used for battery metal precursor materials and man- selves we have a real working solution that we can build ganese silicate product expected to be used in manganese if we have to.” alloy production for the steel industry.

As well as converting the vessel, Allseas has developed

THE NOT SO HIDDEN GEM and built a robotic seabed collector, a riser-based system to

Instead, Allseas has another project to focus on: deep- transport nodules to the surface and a launch and recovery 24 OFFSHORE ENGINEER OEDIGITAL.COM