Whenever a downturn occurs in the offshore oil and gas market, companies in the marine seismic segment are usually the first to be hit. That proved to be the case when the market turned sharply downwards in 2014. It has been a long downturn -with a number of casualties along the way - but marine seismic companies are reinventing themselves, looking at new applications for their technology and even at completely new markets. The latest casualty of the severity of the downturn was Polarcus, at which liquidators were appointed in February 2021. In early May, the company confirmed that all of its directors had resigned their positions with immediate effect, following a 29 April deal that saw Shearwater GeoServices Holding acquire Polarcus' marine seismic acquisition assets and six seismic acquisition vessels for a total consideration of US$127.5M. Shearwater has a fleet of 28 high-capacity towed streamer vessels and ocean bottom vessels. Among its high-capacity towed streamer vessels are the 126m DNV Polar Class 7, diesel-electric Amazon Warrior and Amazon Conqueror that are 18-streamer capable.
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