Question about the real cost of saturation diving

I was reading an old industry report from the Gulf of Mexico and saw the daily cost to run a saturation system can hit $80,000. That's just for the system support, not the divers' pay or the boat. It made me think about how many topside guys have no clue what goes into keeping us alive down there. Where does all that money even go, helium and power? Has anyone worked a job where the budget got cut and you felt it in the bell?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant_wilson7221d ago

Saw a job try to save cash by stretching out the hot water suit maintenance. Nothing like a sudden chill at 500 feet to make you feel real cheap. We all refused to dive until they fixed it, money showed up real fast after that.

troy_reed21d ago

Yeah that "keeping us alive down there" part is the whole thing. I heard about a job where they tried to save money on the gas reclaim system filters. You could SMELL the bad air in the bell, like a weird oily metal taste. That's when you know the budget cuts are hitting your lungs. All that money goes into a million tiny failsafes, and skipping any one feels like a bet you don't want to make.