Below is an update as of early August on TDI-Brooks’ activities focusing on vessel deployments/availability for GoM/Mexico, northern South America (NSA) / Caribbean / Brazil and NW/W Africa regions for seep-hunting, geophysical, geotechnical, environmental baseline survey (EBS), metocean, cable route, wind farm and vessel charter projects.  Our last similar update was Feb-18.  Sorry for the hiatus.    

MEXICO – MV MARIS

 

 

 

TDI-Brooks has conducted six (6) Environmental Baseline Studies (EBS) so far in Mexico with three (3) new blocks awarded from Duetsche Erdoel México (DEM, part of DEA-Group) in Blks. 30, 16 and 17.  Since the last Feb update we have conducted three (3) EBS projects in Mexico for TOTAL (Blk. 15), Chevron (Blk. 22) and Petronas through Marinsa (Blk. 6).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 2018 Mexican EBS projects have been conducted off the MV MARIS with TDI-Brooks technical staff and equipment.  We have chartered the MV MARIS for the remainder of the year for awarded and expected EBS and other survey/geotechnical projects.  In early August, we started the next round of EBS projects in Mexico with the three (3) DEM blocks shown in the above figure.  We have other EBS project opportunities in Mexico in September to December.

TDI-Brooks has conducted more EBS projects over the last year in Mexico than any of our competitors all safely and efficiently without any incidences.  TDI-Brooks focus is the planning, acquisition and analytical components of these ASEA required projects.  We team with Maxon Consulting who provides the regulatory and interpretative reporting components.

TDI-Brooks has its 2D HR site survey kit (i.e., compressor, air-gun & streamer) with Surveyors in Mexico for the next 4- 6 mos as a Subcontractor to Oceaneering for a large PEMEX site survey project. When the R/V GYRE comes out of drydock in September, it may be deployed first to Mexico in late September/October on geotechnical coring/CPT projects.  While TDI-Brooks has the MARIS outfitted for ‘light’ geotechnical coring (6-m PC, BC and g-CPT), we need the GYRE to acquire 20-m Jumbo Piston Cores (JPCs), 40-m CPT-Stingers and Stinger Samplers for deep-water development engineering studies.

TDI-Brooks has multiple vessel options to acquire EBS, geotechnical, survey, metocean and other services in Mexico.  Please let us know if we can assist you with your awarded blocks.  

Strategic Alliances – GEMS, ONE and Maxon Consulting

TDI-Brooks has strategic alliances with a number of companies that allow us to offer complete engineering and environmental project solutions.  We have a long-standing association with Geoscience Earth & Marine Services (GEMS) in Houston to support our engineering reporting in marine geology/geophysics, geotechnical engineering and marine archaeology projects.  TDI-Brooks seep hunting programs are conducted as part of an alliance with ONE (Drs. John Decker, Dan Orange and Phil Teas) with world-class expertise in MBES and seep-site selection.  On environmental baseline surveys, we team with Maxon Consulting to provide the regulatory, comprehensive environmental interpretation and infauna/meiofauna analyses.  Through these strong alliances we can provide integrated solutions for geophysical, geotechnical, seep-hunting and environmental projects.

TDI-Brooks also provides technical engineering and 3rd Party expertise.  

R/V PROTEUS  – Brazil

The R/V PROTEUS has been working continuously the last year on a series of projects in Grenada, Aruba, Colombia, Mexico, US, Fr. Guiana, Morocco and now Brazil.  Since the last report in November, the PROTEUS completed a 3 month-long MBES/ SGE and heat flow (HF) project in Morocco.  The vessel then transited to Brazil and is currently conducting for TGS a large multi-client seep-hunting project (330 PC, 33 JPCs and 33 HF sites) in the Santos and Campos Basins.  Phase I of the TGS multi-client Campos/Santos seep-hunting project will be completed in late September and Phase II (~140 PC) will start in 1Q-19.  The PROTEUS is available for other projects in Brazil in the 4th Qtr and then possibly again in mid-1st Qtr 2019.  It may also leave Brazil in early October for other projects in Africa/NSA.

The PROTEUS is outfitted with TDI-Brooks’ complete geotechnical tool kit including 20-m JPCs and 40-m CPT-Stinger/Samplers along with other TDI-Brooks standard SGE, HF, survey, EBS, cable route, etc. services.  The PROTEUS has a Kongsberg EM-710 (1×1) hull-mounted MBES for surveys to ~2,500-m wd.

 

 

 

 

R/V GYRE – NW Africa

The GYRE is currently in its 5-yr ABS LL/class shipyard period in Pt. Arthur, TX.   The GYRE will come out of drydock early next month and after a few weeks of MBES testing mostly likely head to Senegal for a 5-month long multi-client MBES/SGE/HF project for TGS.

We are pleased to announce the installation of a new hull-mounted EM-304 MBES on the GYRE. The modular, state-of-the-art EM 304 performs accurate, high resolution seabed mapping in shallow to deep waters at depths of more than 8000 m. The successor to the EM 302, the EM 304 has a broad range of functionality for seep hunting and cable route projects.

R/V BROOKS McCALL (BMCC) – Gulf of Mexico / US East Coast

The BMCC remains operational in the Gulf of Mexico and available for spot charters in the Gulf of Mexico and/or the US East Coast/Caribbean out of its homeport of Freeport, TX. Since the last report, the BMCC has conducted several academic, government and industry projects.  

In July, the BMCC was contracted by the University of Texas to conduct a student training cruise.  A mixed group of undergrads and grad students went out on the vessel daily to get hands on practice using standard survey equipment. The cruise focused on using seismic imaging to capture channels carved by the Trinity River in the geological record.

 

 

 

 

Since June 2017, TDI-Brooks has provided GERG’s Ocean Science Group (Texas A&M University) ship support with the BMCC to maintain their Texas Automated Buoy System (TABS) buoys along the Texas coast that provide real time oceanographic measurements winds, waves, currents, salinity and other parameters in the Gulf of Mexico.

 

 

 

TDI-Brooks and the BMCC have several upcoming cruises for gov’t agencies including:

  • In early September a ~2 week cruise funded by BSEE through NOAA to study oil and gas being released from the former Taylor Energy platform lost during a hurricane in MC Blk. 20 off the Mississippi Delta.  The project involves ROV and geophysical studies of the oil and gas plumes with sediment, water and air sampling with 30 scientists/technical onboard from NOAA, BSEE, Florida State, FIU and TDI-Brooks.  Dr. Bernard will be TDI-Brooks’ scientific/mgt lead on and Dr. Ian MacDonald (FSU) will be the Chief Scientist.
  • In early October, a ~2-week cruise out of Charleston, SC discussed below under the NOAA Deep Search project discussion.  

The BMCC’s primary market niche in the Gulf/US East Coast is geotechnical coring including 20-m JPC and 40-m CPT-Stinger and Stinger-Sampler acquisitions.  The BMCC is available for pipeline hazard, cable route surveys, debris mapping, P-Cable, MBES, metocean, sand search, and environmental studies.

Small Vessel Coastal Deployments

TDI-Brooks operates several small vessels for coastal surveys and environmental projects primarily along the Gulf coast.  Below is the 27-ft BARNACLE which is a V-hulled, inboard motor tender vessel suitable for offshore work in wd >4-ft.  These vessels can be outfitted with Edgetech 4600 MBES/SSS, Edgetech 216 SBP, EA 400 fathometer, Geometrics 882 Cesium Magnetometer and C-Nav 3050 DPGS systems.  

 

TDI-Brooks conducted a bathymetry survey in the Carlos Mine Lagoon as part of the Texas A&M University Marine Vibrator JIP.

 

 

 

 

BOEM, NOAA & USFWS Federal Projects

NOAA NS&T Project – TDI-Brooks is the long-standing contractor for NOAA’s National Status and Trends (NS&T) Mussel Watch project.  This is the premier, 28-year monitoring program in coastal bays and estuaries along all three US coasts (East, West/Alaska and GoM).  More info here: https://www.tdi-bi.com/tdi-brooks-awarded-national-status-and-trends-nst-program-mussel-watch-and-bioeffects-programs-analytical-chemistry/

BOEM/NOAA Canyons II Project – TDI-Brooks is the prime contractor for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER), and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) funded study entitled “DEEP SEARCH – DEEP Sea Exploration to Advance Research on Coral/Canyon/Cold seep Habitats.” This interagency five (5) year, multi-million dollar study focuses on the exploration and investigation of deepwater biological communities located in U.S. federal waters of the Atlantic Ocean (Virginia to Georgia). Results of the completed program will provide energy resource information needs for future offshore leasing of the Outer Continental Shelf in the mid and south Atlantic regions and information on the continental slope ecosystems.

 

The first cruise on this project was an 18-day cruise on the NOAA ship PISCES in September 2017 with our multi-disciplinary team of scientists from Temple University, University of Georgia, Nova University, Florida State University, Harvey Mudd College and University of New Hampshire as well as experts from numerous international universities.

 

 

 

 

A second project cruise was to be conducted on the NOAA ship NANCY FOSTER but was cancelled due to unexpected ship repairs. The activities of the Nancy Foster cruise were split into two components – multibeam mapping surveys and sampling. The mapping surveys were accomplished with the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer through coordination with NOAA OER during two legs from May 30 – June 5 and then from June 12 – July 2. An extensive description of this cruise can be found at: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1806/welcome.html 

WHOI’s RV Atlantis with Alvin in stern A-frame

 

In August, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution’s (WHOI) RV Atlantis and HOV Alvin will be employed to dive and collect samples in the DEEP Search area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sampling replacement for the Nancy Foster cruise coming in October is on TDI-Brooks ship RV BROOKS McCALL. Some of the sampling to be attempted will involve Jumbo Piston Cores collected at selected features of interest (e.g., mounds).

TDI-Brooks is entering a multi-year contract with Univ. of Texas to support them with the field acquisition of P-Cable studies using the R/V BROOKS McCALL funded by DOE.

US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) – TDI-Brooks for much of its history has been one of USFWS’s contract laboratories for trace organic analyses.  In the 2Q-2018, this contract was renewed for another 5-years.

3rd Party Deployments.  TDI-Brooks can offer our coring/CPT, HF, EBS and other services off 3rd party vessels.  We have 3rd Party vessel kits for all the services we offer for deployment worldwide on projects where our vessels are not located or otherwise committed. The 3rd Party outfitting for EBS projects and 2D HR surveys (through Oceaneering) in Mexico were discussed above.  Below are some 3rd Party projects that TDI-Brooks has recently or will shortly conduct.

Canadian Seabed Research Ltd. (CSR)/US East – TDI-Brooks will deploy in late September its PC and gCPT geotechnical kit with operators for CSR as part of a cable route survey on the US East Coast.

XOM Project in Guyana through Benthic – TDI-Brooks has its geotechnical coring and EBS kit with ~9 staff to be deployed in early September for ~30-days on a Benthic vessel in Guyana conducting shallow PC/BC and EBS acquisition.

Upcoming Conferences

TDI-Brooks upcoming exhibitions include the following:

  • HGS-PESGB Africa Conference – September 11 – 12, 2018, Houston, Texas, Norris Conference Center, Booth # 14 & 15
  • Offshore Wind Executive Summit – September 24 – 25, 2018,  Houston, Texas, Westin Galleria, Booth # 19
  • AAPG/ICE International Convention & Exhibition – November 4 – 7, 2018, Cape Town, South Africa, Cape Town Convention Center, Booth # 505
  • SETAC North America – November 4 – 8, 2018, Sacramento, California, Sacramento Convention Center, Booth # 424
  • Oceanology International Americas –  February 25 – 27, 2019, San Diego, California, San Diego Convention Centre, Booth # F41
  • U.S. Hydro 2019 Conference – March 19 – 21, 2019, Biloxi, MS, Beau Rivage, Booth # 13/14
  • PESGB Africa Conference – March 29 – 31, 2019, Oxford, UK, New College, Booth TBD
  • Ocean Business – April 9 – 11, 2019, South Hampton, UK, National Oceanography Centre, Booth # J6

Summary

TDI-Brooks operates all of our vessels on the spot market for various research and oil company service projects.  All the TDI-Brooks vessels are outfitted for our market niches of seep hunting, survey/MBES, geotechnical and environmental sampling and cable route surveys.  Most are also available for hazard, bathymetry and metocean projects.   The vessels are available for charter by Clients for other purposes. TDI-Brooks operates these vessels under its own Safety Management System and DOC. Additional details on the vessels and our services can be found on our web site: www.tdi-bi.com

Please let us know if you would like to schedule or discuss chartering services on any of our TDI-Brooks’ research vessels.

James M. Brooks, Ph.D.
President/CEO
jimbrooks@tdi-bi.com
Cell:  979-693-3446
 
Melissa Wood
Marketing & Business Development Manager
melissawood@tdi-bi.com
Cell:  713-208-1734

Contact Us

TDI-Brooks International, Inc.
14391 S. Dowling Road
College Station, TX 77845

Email: info@tdi-bi.com
Phone: +1 (979) 693-3446