Italian oilfield services company Saipem has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Fincantieri to explore opportunities for collaboration in the field of subsea robotics.

This partnership aims to enhance surveillance and control of critical underwater infrastructure.

In a press statement, Saipem said: “Saipem is in fact the first company in the world to have qualified and commercialised resident autonomous subsea drones for intervention and inspection activities at depths of up to 3,000m.

“Designed and industrialised between Marghera (Venice) and Trieste, they have already been deployed for the control and maintenance of underwater infrastructure in the offshore energy market at the service of major energy companies.”

The collaboration will integrate Fincantieri's expertise in surface vessels and submarines with Saipem's "Hydrone" drone development programme.

Saipem's Sonsub division has pioneered the commercial use of autonomous subsea drones capable of operating at depths up to 3,000m.

Saipem said: “By signing the memorandum of understanding, Fincantieri and Saipem aim to become a key reference for the subsea domain, whose strategic relevance is becoming increasingly evident in the current geopolitical context.

Last year, Saipem secured offshore contracts, one in Guyana and the other in Brazil, worth a total of around $1.9bn (€1.7bn).

US energy major ExxonMobil’s subsidiary ExxonMobil Guyana awarded the first contract for the proposed Whiptail oilfield development and the second contract was awarded by Equinor for the Raia project offshore Brazil.

The scope of the Guyana contract included design, manufacture and installation of subsea structures, risers, flowlines and umbilicals for a sizeable subsea production plant.

The scope of work for Raia included horizontal drilling operations for the shore approach as well as the offshore transport and installation of a subsea gas export pipe and related equipment at water depths of around 2,900m.