Offshore subsea infrastructure in the Black Sea region requires sophisticated corrosion protection systems engineered to withstand the unique challenges of marine environments while providing decades of maintenance-free service. When a major offshore operator required cathodic protection anode pods for critical subsea installations located 45 nautical miles from Sinop in the Black Sea, they needed a specialist contractor capable of delivering DNV-RP-B401 compliant solutions under an aggressive timeline. The project demanded not only expertise in offshore cathodic protection engineering but also rapid mobilization, precision manufacturing and coordination of complex subsea installation operations using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) in challenging offshore conditions.
DNV-RP-B401 represents the international gold standard for cathodic protection design of offshore structures, establishing rigorous requirements for anode sizing calculations, material specifications, structural design criteria, installation methods and long-term performance validation. Compliance with this demanding standard requires deep technical expertise spanning electrochemical engineering, marine materials science, structural analysis, hydrodynamic modeling and offshore installation procedures. The anode pods needed to be precisely engineered to deliver optimal protection current to the subsea structures throughout their design life while withstanding the mechanical forces imposed by seabed conditions, water currents, marine growth and potential fishing gear interactions. Each pod represented a complex integration of sacrificial anode elements, structural support framework, foundation system and ROV-compatible installation features.
Seaway Ship Services' proven capabilities in offshore cathodic protection systems, combined with our in-house engineering and manufacturing resources, positioned us as the ideal partner for this time-critical project. Our challenge was to execute a complete project cycle—from initial design engineering through manufacturing, quality assurance, logistics coordination and installation support—within just 24 days total: two weeks of intensive engineering and planning followed by 10 days of accelerated production. This compressed timeline demanded exceptional project management, parallel work streams and seamless coordination between our engineering team, manufacturing personnel, quality control specialists and offshore installation contractors. The successful delivery would showcase Seaway's unique capability to execute complex offshore projects under demanding schedules while maintaining full compliance with international standards and achieving the uncompromising quality requirements essential for subsea infrastructure designed to operate for 25+ years without maintenance intervention.
