Along the U.S. Gulf Coast, Dive Contractors Predict a Busy Year
All along the rebranded Gulf of America, U.S. waterfront infrastructure is getting attention after decades of deferred maintenance, and the businesses of marine salvage and ship’s husbandry are on the uptick.
Industry leaders like Brady Teasely, the HSE Manager for Leviathan Offshore LLC, are looking forward to an upcycle for diving contractors. His presentation at Underwater Intervention 2025 emphasized projected growth through 2033.
Leviathan Offshore is diving into 2026 expecting a year of full asset and labor utilization. Leviathan had a busy year in 2025 and is fully vested in meeting the demand for turnkey offshore dive services by adding two new dive support vessels to their fleet. The first is the US-flagged MPSV Kraken. The Kraken is a diesel-electric-powered, DP2 dynamic positioning system with a below-deck Drager 14-person saturation system. The second is a US-flagged 4-point anchor boat, the DSV Proteus. The 200’ long DSV Proteus boasts a 40-ton crane and below deck systems for jetting and hydraulic packages, as well as storage for dive gases. The DSV Proteus completed sea trials late 2025 and completed her initial projects free of incidents or mechanical delays. The MPSV Kraken will be gearing up for work as a saturation vessel and is expected to begin her maiden project during the spring of 2026.
Inland dive contractors are also forecasting 2026 to be a robust year. In the past, it was not common to have both the inland and offshore industry segments in full swing at the same time. In past years when the offshore oil and gas segment was booming, the inland segment consisting of waterfront facilities and civil infrastructure would often be in a state of lull and vice versa. That was then. Looking ahead, the foreseeable new normal is expected to be something different.
Tim Wakefield founded Dead Calm Seas Marine Services LLC in 2019 with an intent and purpose of improving the industry. Since its inception, the Dead Calm Seas team seem to be busy doing just that. In the field, on and below the water, Tim and his team are all about setting the standard for safety, diver pay and quality of work.
“Standards, enforcement, accountability, every diver home” are key goals of diver turned businessman Tim Wakefield. Dead Calm Seas LLC have achieved this by undergoing a near constant process of auditing from organizations like IMCA, ADCI, IOGP as well as current and potential customers. Wakefield says that “it is important to understand what customers are the right fit for your company, and it is very achievable to work for the majors if you make the sacrifice.” This model of doing business is working: Dead Calm Seas has grown exponentially every year, and this trend is expected to continue in 2026.
Part of the trick for growth for Dead Calm Seas is to develop and hire divers with a diverse range of talent. Their team’s skillset includes salvage, marine firefighting, rope access and non-destructive testing. A group of Dead Calm Seas Divers are currently outfitting a portable IMCA-compliant saturation system. Working with surface supplied mixed gas and saturation diving is not unheard of for inland divers, but it is rare that an inland dive company or any dive contractor has such well-rounded skillsets. Maybe this too will become the new normal.
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Companies like Leviathan Offshore LLC and Dead Calm Seas LLC are prepared for a period of growth during this new uptick, but this does not come without challenges. The biggest and most obvious is the shortage of qualified labor. The skill deficit is industry-wide, and is not limited to the diving crews. Support staff such as project management teams and HSE support are also in a deficit of experienced personnel. “We must find a way to get the next generation ready. This is an issue that needs to be addressed,” Wakefield says.
His sentiments are echoed by many in the industry. The expectation is that 2026 is going to be a busy year, and the art of crew management is going to be put to the test.
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