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Subsea World News has put together a recap of the most interesting articles from the previous week (January 19 – January 25).

Oilfield services major, Schlumberger, decided to reduce its overall headcount, in response to lower commodity pricing and anticipated lower exploration and production spending in 2015.

The company, which employs approximately 120,000 people in more than 85 countries, recorded a $296 million charge associated with a headcount reduction of approximately 9,000.

Shell UK confirmed that a release of gas occurred from infrastructure in the vicinity of Shell’s Curlew (FPSO) located approximately 130 miles south east of Aberdeen late on Monday, January 19, 2015.

According to Shell’s statement a release of gas was detected several hundred meters away from the FPSO at approximately 2300hrs. Initial indications were that the escape had occurred from the subsea infrastructure close to the FPSO, which is connected to the Fulmar Gas Line exporting gas to the St Fergus terminal.

In November, when GE opened its new research center in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, anyone who came in got a chance to see what a subsea factory looks like from the comfort and safety of an armchair.

Researchers at the center will be working on deep sea technologies, and GE used a headset developed by the virtual reality company Oculus Rift to design an immersive 3D virtual reality tour of one such installation.

Mojo Maritime and IKM Subsea, Norwegian ROV manufacturer and operator, have jointly secured an EU Horizon 2020 Grant to support the development of an ROV for use in high energy tidal sites, and capable of being operated from Mojo’s tidal energy vessel, the Hi Flo 4 (HF4).

Mojo and IKM joined forces in mid-2014 to bid for EU funding, from the Maritime Technologies (MARTEC II) call, and won a €1,200,000 for their R&D project.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) issued a tender, seeking recovery services, in the event of locating the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

The ATSB said preliminary tenders would allow it to assess which organisations are able to supply the equipment and expertise required for any recovery operation.