Newly formed subsea firm M² Subsea has opened its new office in Aberdeen and created 30 jobs.
The business, which secured private equity investment towards the end of 2016, has moved people and equipment into premises in Arnhall Business Park at Westhill in Aberdeenshire.
The firm has set out to be one of the largest independent providers of ROV services globally and has taken on 27 remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), mobilizing 10 of them onto a fleet of subsea vessels.
The firm was able to buy the fleet from the administrators of failed subsea services firm Harkand after getting the investment from a fund advised by Alchemy Special Opportunities.
The company, which has also a presence in Houston, expects to create 50 onshore and 100 offshore jobs by the end of the year. About 30 people have joined the management team in the UK and the US with more expected to be recruited as imminent contracts are signed.
Mike Arnold, the firm's CEO, said: “The time is absolutely right for a new ROV services provider with a fresh approach that can, through experience, expertise, the correct asset base and lean management, dramatically reduce both cost and risk whilst continuing to provide a professional and quality service. Key to this will be our collaboration with vessel owners and operators, helping them to maximize utilization of vessels and offering competitive solutions to meet our clients’ demands.”
“It’s all about recalibration,” he added. ”The current oil price is here to stay for a considerable period so the focus is on getting costs down. We’ve been able to get best-in-class assets at the right price and an overhead appropriate for the current market. Our people have the knowledge, experience and commitment required to shape a fresh approach to the market and I firmly believe it’s this mind-set that will set us apart from other companies."
The firm is being led by Mike Arnold, the founder of Rovtech, in 1986, as well as Hallin Marine UK and Bibby Offshore’s ROV services unit. He is joined by a strong management team of other subsea veterans including Mark Wood and Mike Winstanley. Wood has also worked at Rovtech, Hallin and Bibby. Winstanley founded Bowtech products, after working for Bergen Underwater Services, Subsea Services and Bennico. Bowtech was acquired by Teledyne in 2014.