Fincantieri and Eni are partnering on Clean Sea, Eni’s proprietary technology. Clean Sea is an underwater robotic system designed for monitoring marine ecosystems and subsea infrastructure, including the verification of their in-service integrity.
Fincantieri takes part in the partnership through its subsidiary IDS – Ingegneria dei Sistemi. IDS specialises in the development of unmanned systems for the underwater market and related command-and-control systems and in the industrialisation of advanced sensors and radar technologies.
The agreement grants IDS an exclusive licence for the worldwide commercialisation and industrial development of the Clean Sea technology. Clean Sea will be deployed for underwater inspection activities and initiatives related to the offshore market’s energy transition objectives, with particular focus on carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in marine environments. The licence will enable IDS to use Clean Sea to support Eni‘s operational requirements and those of third-party customers.
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Hybrid ROV/AUV
Clean Sea is based on hybrid remotely operated vehicle/autonomous underwater vehicle (ROV/AUV) architecture, that allows it to be used in remote-controlled form, from a support vessel or in fully autonomous mode. The technology incorporates interchangeable modular payloads, known as e-pods.
The e-pods combine instruments and sensors tailored to specific monitoring and inspection tasks, including water sampling, detailed visual analysis, and 3D acoustic reconstructions, ensuring advanced data acquisition and processing capabilities even in complex offshore environments.
The technology will be integrated with various autonomous platforms and unmanned systems developed by the Fincantieri Group, enabling scalable applications both in terms of operational volumes and new use cases.
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Further development and complementary solutions
The agreement could also see Eni and IDS collaborate on further developing the platform and complementary solutions, strengthening Italian expertise in robotics and underwater systems. It supports Eni’s strategy of bringing proprietary technologies to market through partnerships, while expanding their commercial and industrial applications. For Fincantieri, the agreement reinforces its position in the underwater sector and strengthens the Underwater Technology Hub as a centre for developing civil, defence and dual-use technologies to protect critical subsea infrastructure.
Picture: Eni’s Clean Sea technology (photo by Fincantieri/Eni).
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