An unmanned, tethered underwater robot used to inspect, survey, or perform work on subsea pipelines, wellheads, and structures — subcontractors providing ROV services typically require specialised operators and vessels, and should account for mobilisation costs and standby rates when bidding these scopes.
ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle)
Related Terms
Exploration Well
IndustryA well drilled in an unproven or lightly tested area to determine whether hydrocarbons are present, often representing shorter-term, high-mobilisation contracts for subcontractors with less predictable follow-on work than development drilling programmes.
Frac Campaign
IndustryA scheduled series of hydraulic fracturing operations across multiple wells or stages within a defined period, representing a concentrated burst of work that subcontractors must plan for with adequate crew, equipment, and supply chain capacity. For field service companies, winning a spot in a frac campaign can mean weeks of steady, high-volume work but also demands tight mobilisation timelines and the ability to scale up quickly.
Reactivation
IndustryThe process of bringing a dormant well, pipeline, or piece of equipment back into active service, often requiring subcontractors to mobilise crews, conduct inspections, and complete compliance checks before full operations can resume. For field service companies, reactivation work can represent a significant surge in contract opportunities, particularly during periods of rising commodity prices.
Subsea Production System
IndustryA network of underwater equipment — including wellheads, manifolds, flowlines, and control systems — installed on the seabed to extract and transport oil or gas to a surface facility, representing a specialised scope of subsea installation, inspection, and maintenance work that subcontractors must hold specific certifications and equipment to perform. For field service companies, contracts in this space typically involve saturation diving support, remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operations, or subsea engineering services under strict offshore safety and quality regimes.
EOR (Enhanced Oil Recovery)
IndustryA set of advanced extraction techniques—such as steam injection, chemical flooding, or CO2 injection—used to pull additional crude from mature or low-yield reservoirs, which drives demand for specialised field service crews, equipment operators, and maintenance contractors on long-term site assignments.
Mobilization/Demobilization
IndustryThe process of moving equipment and personnel to a job site (mobilization) and returning them afterward (demobilization). Often billed as separate line items.
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