Helix Robotics Solutions, the robotics division of US-based the Helix Energy Solutions Group, has been awarded a contract by SSEN Transmission to provide unexploded ordnance (UXO) target investigation services for the Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL2) offshore subsea cable project.
The contract is scheduled to last 125 days and is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2025.
Under the contract, Helix will utilise the DP2 subsea support vessel Glomar Wave, a work-class remotely operated vehicle (WROV), and its in-house explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team to conduct UXO identification along an 80-metre corridor. The company said its target investigation services are intended to reduce the risk of UXO being on the cable route to As Low As Reasonably Practicable standards prior to the start of cable installation.
EGL2 is a collaboration between SSEN Transmission and National Grid Electricity Transmission and forms a key part of the UK’s effort to deliver on its energy security and net zero targets.
The EGL2 project entails the installation of a new 2GW high-voltage direct current subsea and onshore underground cable link from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, to Drax in North Yorkshire, England. The delivery of this project, alongside other subsea and onshore electricity transmission grid upgrades, will increase the capacity of the UK’s transmission network, taking clean energy from where it is generated to where it is needed.