Key points
- Assembly of the collecting machine (CM) commenced this week at Soil Machine Dynamics’ facility in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
- The CM is the second of three sea-floor production tools, following completion of the bulk cutter’s assembly announced in April.
- The CM weighs 200 tonnes fully assembled, making it the lightest of the three production tools.
- CEO Mike Johnston said assembly of the third tool, the auxiliary cutter, will begin next month when its chassis is delivered.
Nautilus Minerals Inc. has this week commenced the assembly of its second of three sea-floor production tools, the collecting machine, at Soil Machine Dynamics’ facility at Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom.
Nautilus’s chief executive officer, Mike Johnston, said: “Having already announced in April this year the completion of the assembly of the bulk cutter, we are delighted that the assembly of the CM has now commenced with the arrival of the chassis at the SMD facility. This is an exciting time for the company as we continue with the build of the sea-floor production equipment. We look forward to the commencement of the assembly of the third and final SPT, the auxiliary cutter, when its chassis is delivered next month.”
The CM is the lightest of the three sea-floor production tools, weighing 200 tonnes when fully assembled. It is designed to collect material cut from the sea floor by drawing it in as sea water slurry with internal pumps and pushing it through a flexible pipe to the riser and lifting system and onto the production support vessel, arrangements for which are to be in place by the end of the year.
Subsea vehicle designer and manufacturer SMD of Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K., is the company responsible for building the sea-floor production tools for Nautilus.
How they will work
The excavation and collection of mineralized material have been split into three individual tasks, which will each be carried out by a different sea-floor production tool. The AC is designed as the pioneering tool that prepares the rugged seabed for the more powerful BC. These two tools gather the excavated material; the third, the CM, will collect the cut material by drawing it in as sea water slurry with internal pumps and pushing it through a flexible pipe to the subsea pump and on to the production support vessel through the riser and lifting system.
