Equinor, a Norwegian state-backed oil and gas company, has selected Nauticus Robotics and its partner Stinger Technology to deploy Nauticus’ proprietary technology for leak detection.

US-listed Nauticus is engaged in developing ocean robots and artificial intelligence for autonomous services to the marine sectors.

The deal aims to demonstrate and qualify Nauticus’ leak detection technology using autonomous robots for Equinor.

The pilot project, according to Nauticus, seeks to develop a variety of applications for autonomous subsea robots as well as meet the need for better leak detection technology.

Equinor operates about 600 undersea wells and 9,000km of subsea cables, risers, and pipelines.

Having methods and systems for leak detection forms key part of the energy company’s sustainability efforts, Nauticus noted.

With this deal, Nauticus also hopes to qualify for Equinor’s future contracts.

Nauticus CEO Nicolaus Radford said: “The project for Equinor highlights the versatility of our fleet offering and the increasing need for technologies like ours to address the many challenges for subsea operations in Norway and around the globe.

“This milestone is yet another example of how we are at the forefront of this technical revolution and are changing how work is done in our precious oceans.”

Last week, Equinor awarded two contracts for its operations on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).

Equinor selected ocean services provider DeepOcean for supporting the Troll B – Increased Gas Export project.

The second contract was awarded to Ocean Installer for work at Visund, Vigdis, Åsgard fields and the Northern Lights CO₂ Pipeline.

Last week, two contracts were given out by Equinor for its assets on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).

DeepOcean was chosen by Equinor to assist with the Troll B - Increased Gas Export project.

Ocean Installer received the second contract for work at the Northern Lights CO₂ Pipeline, the Visund, Vigdis, and Åsgard fields.