Underwater positioning equipment from Sonardyne Asia Pte Ltd. has been selected by PDE Offshore Corporation to support its work on wind farm construction projects offshore Taiwan.

PDE Offshore’s survey vessel, MV Geo Energy is now fitted with Sonardyne’s Mini-Ranger 2 Ultra-Short BaseLine (USBL)

The company has ordered a Mini-Ranger 2 Ultra-Short BaseLine (USBL) system and Wideband Sub-Mini 6+ (WSM 6+) transponder/responders to accurately track the position its underwater equipment, which includes a seabed frame used to guide geotechnical corers.

The Mini-Ranger 2 will be installed and operated from PDE Offshore’s 72-metre long survey vessel MV Geo Energy, which is scheduled to spend this summer working in the Taiwan Strait, evaluating proposed locations for turbine foundations.

Mini-Ranger 2 is built around Sonardyne’s 6G hardware and Wideband 2 digital acoustic technology platforms. At its heart is HPT 3000, a highly capable surface-deployed USBL transceiver optimised for performance in shallow water, as well as high elevation and long lay back operating scenarios and data telemetry. 

The size and positioning performance of WSM 6+ makes it a transponder choice for fitting to and tracking underwater vehicles and equipment. Its built-in depth sensor improves USBL precision, while a responder mode allows fast moving targets to the tracked at the highest possible update rate.

Huang Hsin-chih, president of PDE Offshore, says,
"Where we work in the Taiwan Strait, water depth is from 20 to 60 meters; in the future, there might be a chance to work in offshore wind farm with water depth from 50 to 200 meters, so whilst we do need a very precise USBL, we don’t need the one that’s full ocean depth capable. Through renting, we have become familiar with Mini-Ranger 2 and the benefits it’s brought to our busy geotechnical operations. So it was a simple choice to decide to go ahead and purchase one of our own.”

Dan Tan, Regional Sales Manager for Sonardyne in Singapore, says,
"Taiwan’s ambitions of becoming a green island means it is fast becoming a leading player offshore wind in Asia Pacific. We’re pleased to be a part this energy transition through PDE Offshore’s investment. Although this will be a permanent installation, Mini-Ranger 2 is also a great option for moving between vessels and even unmanned surface vessels (USVs).”

KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: Sonardyne