SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
Cleaning inaccessible water reservoirs using remotely operated vehicles
- Published 20 March 2023; updated 21 September 2026; estimated reading time 3 minutes. Marked available; listed under Water and wastewater.
- W. Giertsen Water Technology’s Tunnel Remotely Operated Vehicle (TROV) cleans drinking-water tunnels, reservoirs and caverns that people cannot safely enter. An electrically powered, wheeled ROV with pumps, motors, lights and cameras is controlled by trained staff from a control room; it vacuums sediment from the floor and pumps it out. The system can also collect water and sediment samples to help assess the condition of infrastructure.
- TROV is intended to avoid shutting down or emptying storage spaces and to reduce hazards from confined-space manual cleaning. The article says sediments can provide a breeding environment for harmful bacteria and parasites, and that regular cleaning may extend reservoir life. It reports the vehicle complies with Norwegian Food Safety Authority requirements.
- The article says Giertsen was cleaning all Bergen municipality’s tunnels and reservoirs and planned a second TROV and eventually a fleet. It cites a Norwegian estimate of USD 32 billion in drinking-water/wastewater infrastructure upgrades over 20 years. The page identifies potential uses in inaccessible reservoirs, raw-water and hydropower tunnels, waterways and canals worldwide.
- Linked to SDGs 6 (Clean water and sanitation) and 11 (Sustainable cities and communities).
- Contact: Frank Mohn, CEO, frank.mohn@giertsen.no. Company: W. GIERTSEN VANNTEKNOLOGI AS, Nygårdsviken 1, 5165 Laksevåg, Norway; giertsentunnel.no/vannteknologi/en/home. A phone-number reveal control is present.