Saipem’s FlatFish underwater drone successfully completes test campaign with Petrobras and moves to the final stage of the project
Milan (Italy), March 19, 2026 - FlatFish, Saipem’s most advanced underwater inspection drone, has successfully completed a key phase under the contract awarded by Petrobras in 2023 for the development and testing of an autonomous robotic solution. These were Functional Acceptance Tests, executed in a controlled environment, aimed at verifying that all the functions required by the contract - from mission autonomy to data quality - meet the technical and operational standards established before deployment on the field.
Following the positive tests outcome, Petrobras has been able to grant approval to proceed with the final phase of the project, which aims at the full implementation of the FlatFish technology in a real offshore environment in the ultra-deep waters of Brazil.
The testing campaign was held at Saipem’s underwater drone testing facility in Italy, in Trieste, at the presence of Petrobras representatives, and showcased the full operational capabilities of FlatFish, achieving a remarkable step forward for the underwater robotics industry.
Indeed, throughout the Tests campaign the drone executed multiple fully autonomous inspection missions including structure and pipeline inspections, cathodic protection measurements, and wall‑thickness assessments.
FlatFish, a hybrid and fully autonomous underwater inspection drone, has been developed as part of “Hydrone”, Saipem’s underwater robotics program aimed at industrializing a family of underwater robots capable to perform complex, autonomous inspection tasks at depths of up to 3,000 meters.
Saipem is committed to the development of cutting-edge underwater robotics, with applications spanning from very shallow to ultra deep waters, from subsea resident to semi-resident deployment, enabling full autonomous inspections.
In this context, the long-term partnership with Petrobras provides valuable contributions to the final development stages of a strategic capability in the energy offshore industry.
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Saipem is a global leader in the engineering and construction of major projects for the energy and infrastructure sectors, both offshore and onshore. Saipem is “One Company” organized into business lines: Asset Based Services, Drilling and Sonsub, Energy Carriers, Offshore Wind, Sustainable Infrastructures. The company has 5 fabrication yards and an offshore fleet of 17 construction vessels owned and 12 drilling rigs, of which 9 owned. Always oriented towards technological innovation, the company’s purpose is “Engineering for a sustainable future”. As such Saipem is committed to supporting its clients on the energy transition pathway towards Net Zero, with increasingly digital means, technologies and processes geared for environmental sustainability. Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, it is present in more than 50 countries around the world and employs about 30,000 people of over 130 nationalities.
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