NOAA awards Fugro new five-year hydrographic survey contract

Fugro has been awarded a new five-year contract by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for hydrographic survey services.

Under this indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract, Fugro will support the creation and maintenance of highly accurate nautical charts, which will ensure safe and efficient maritime navigation within US waters. Projects can be assigned to any of the six companies holding an IDIQ contract based on the NOAA's ongoing priorities.

The contract will be administered by the NOAA's Office of Coast Survey (OCS), which is responsible for maintaining the nation's nautical charts. This includes thousands of electronic navigational charts covering approximately 153,000 kilometres of shoreline and 3.6 million square nautical miles of ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes waters to the outer limits of the US Exclusive Economic Zone.

Since 1996, NOAA OCS has relied on five-year IDIQ contracts with private-sector firms to fulfil this critical mission. Fugro has been supporting NOAA OCS throughout this period, introducing multiple advanced technologies such as airborne lidar bathymetry and remote and autonomous survey techniques to enhance survey safety, speed, and sustainability.

The new IDIQ contract, effective January 1, 2025, and expiring December 31, 2029, will be managed from Fugro's Hydrography Center of Excellence in Houston.