About DeepOcean

A world-leading ocean services provider

Who we are

DeepOcean is a technology-driven, independent solution provider in the ocean space.

We offer companies within oil and gas, offshore renewables, deep sea minerals, and other non-energy niches a full range of services – from surveys, engineering, project management, and installation to maintenance and recycling.

Our global team of experts is at the forefront of remote and unmanned operations and digitally-enabled services. Supported by an extensive tool and technology pool, they drive cost-efficient, safe and sustainable operations.

DeepOcean has a GO GREEN attitude, continuously looking to make our customers’ operations more sustainable, through reducing both carbon footprint and costs.  

A world-leading ocean services provider, DeepOcean enables the energy transition and sustainable use of ocean resources.
People are the heart of our operations. It’s about technology, systems, and processes, but in the end, it is our people that deliver the services.

Leadership

Our forward-looking executive leadership team is made up of dedicated, focused, and experienced executives. They know the industry. They understand the market drivers and our customer’s needs. They honestly believe that we are nothing without our people and the people around us.

Our leaders

Øyvind Mikaelsen

Øyvind Mikaelsen

Chief Executive Officer
Øyvind Mikaelsen serves as Chief Executive Officer since May 2018. He has 30 years of experience in the global subsea business holding various senior executive roles. His most recent position was Executive Vice President at Subsea 7. Øyvind began his career in the oil and gas industry with Kvaerner Rosenberg A/S in 1988. He then moved to Norske Shell before joining Subsea 7 in 1992. He holds a Master of Science degree from the University of Trondheim in Norway
Frode Garlid

Frode Garlid

Chief Financial Officer
Before joining DeepOcean as Chief Financial Officer in March 2018, Frode Garlid served as VP Operations & Risk in NOV Wellstream Processing. Prior to this he served as Chief Financial Officer & Chief of Staff of Fjords Processing which was acquired by NOV from Akastor ASA late 2016. Frode has also served as CFO of OneSubsea Processing Group (previously known as Framo Engineering). He has 17 years of experience within finance and operations in the oil and gas industry, mainly from different positions at Schlumberger in France, Africa, Russia and the Middle East where he gained broad experience within both EPC and services - and where he also held the position as Global Controller for the Subsea division of Schlumberger. Frode Garlid holds a Master of Arts with Honours in Economics Science & Finance from the University of Aberdeen in 2001, and law studies from the University in Bergen. In addition, he has attended the Executive Education at The Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania
Ottar K Mæland

Ottar K Mæland

Chief Operating Officer
Since joining DeepOcean in 2007, Ottar Mæland has held various senior positions such as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Commercial Officer. His prior experience includes seven years at Norsk Hydro. Mr Mæland holds a Master of Science in Material Technology, a Business Economist Degree from the Norwegian School of Management and graduated from the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.
Stephane Abergel

Stephane Abergel

Chief Commercial Officer
Stephane Abergel joined DeepOcean in 2019 bringing with him extensive experience in the Oil & Gas Industry working in Africa, Far East, North America, Central Asia and the Middle East for major subsea contractors such as Saipem, Sonamet, Acergy, and latterly Subsea 7. Stephane has broad management skills with original core discipline in Engineering, Project Management and Onshore/Offshore construction and brings a detailed understanding of mechanisms governing Win & Execute aspect of large turnkey projects. Stephane also brings vital skills and experience in setting strategic plans with strong experience in exploring new frontiers as VP of Strategy at Subsea 7.
Hege Jarstø

Hege Jarstø

Group HR Director
Hege Jarstø joined Deepocean in 2021 as Group HR Director. Hege has over 20 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, and she understands the complexities of the human side of the business. Companies like AkerBP Asa, Det Norske Oljeselskap, Marathon Oil, Acergy, and Norsk Olje & Gass have provided her experience. She has substantial HR management expertise from a variety of positions. Her most recent post was at AkerBP ASA, where she supported and developed the organization towards digital transformation. Hege graduated from the University of Stavanger with a Master of Business Administration.
Erik Bergh

Erik Bergh

Group HSEQS and Sustainability Director
Erik Bergh joined the company in 2019 as Group HSEQS Director. Erik has over 18 years work experience in the oil & gas industry with various leadership roles at country, regional and global levels. Prior to joining DeepOcean, Erik held management positions in HSEQ and Sales and Marketing at Subsea 7 and Acergy. Mr. Bergh holds a Master of Science degree in Quality Management from Nottingham Trent University, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from St. Olaf College, and a Culinary Arts Diploma from Le Cordon Bleu.
Olaf A. Hansen

Olaf A. Hansen

Managing Director Europe
Since joining DeepOcean in 2005, Olaf has held several positions within the company. He started as an onshore and offshore engineer and has held various positions within operations and commercial disciplines. He joined the global management team in 2018 as Managing Director with P&L responsibility for the Europe region. Mr Hansen holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and graduated from the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.
Tony Stokes

Tony Stokes

President Americas
Since joining DeepOcean in 2002, Tony Stokes has held several positions both onshore and offshore across the globe. He has led operations and commercial activities in the US, Europe and the Asia Pacific regions. He joined the senior management team in 2007 and has held P&L responsibilities in Asia, the Middle East and now for the Americas region, most recently as President-Americas. Tony brings extensive management skills to the Americas with a continued focus on expansion and introducing further service lines into the region. Mr Stokes is a graduate of finance from Coastal Carolina University.
Maxime Cerramon

Maxime Cerramon

Managing Director Africa
Maxime joined DeepOcean in 2017, strengthening the company’s subsea operations and IRM project expertise on a global scale. As a founder of Searov Offshore, an ROV service company providing custom services to operators in West Africa and Southeast Asia, Maxime had taken on a role within DeepOcean, when Searov Offshore was acquired by DeepOcean Group in 2017. He has held positions as Africa Technical Director and most recently as Africa Managing Director. Maxime serves the DeepOcean board with extensive knowledge of the African continent, drawing from his local experience gained over the past 20 years.

Our board of Directors

Jo Lunder

Jo Lunder

Chairman
Jo Lunder was appointed Chair of the DeepOcean Board of Directors in September 2018. With over 30 years of experience in senior executive positions, principally as Chairman and CEO of large public and private owned companies. His most recent position was CEO of the Fredriksen Group, one of the world’s largest family groups with investments in shipping, oil services, fish farming, and a variety of other sector investments. Prior to that, Jo served as Chairman and CEO of Vimpelcom (Veon), one of the world’s largest mobile telecommunications companies. He has also held the position of President at Ferd Capital, a Norwegian family group with a diverse portfolio of indirect and direct investments. During those years, he served as the executive Chairman of Aibel. He held the CEO position at position at Ementor (Atea), where he executed a significant restructuring of the company, creating the largest IT infrastructure company in the Nordics. In his earlier career, he was in the banking industry and later held various executive positions at Telenor, growing their domestic mobile business. Jo holds an MBA from Henley Business School and is currently working as an independent advisor, investor and Chairman.
Kristian Diesen

Kristian Diesen

Non-Executive Director
Kristian joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in February 2019. He is an Investment Advisory Professional at Triton. He joined Triton from Pareto Securities, where he held a senior partner position in the research department with the main focus on oil services. Previously, Kristian worked at Deloitte in the Auditing division. He holds an MSc in Business from the Norwegian School of Management.
COLETTE COHEN

COLETTE COHEN

Non-Executive Director
Colette joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in July 2021. With over 25 years of experience in the industry, Colette has worked both in the UK and Internationally for BP, ConocoPhillips and Centrica E&P, where she served as the regional VP for the UK and Netherlands. Collete served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Net Zero Technology Centre, an organisation committed to the research and development of technology to accelerate the Oil and Gas industry's transition to an affordable net zero future. Colette holds a degree in Chemistry from Queens University Belfast, a master’s in Project Management & Economics from CERAM in France and an honorary PhD from Aberdeen University. She was awarded the Order of the British Empire by the Queen for her services to the Oil and Gas industry. Colette serves as the Chair of the National Composites Centre and sits on the boards of OPITO and NORECO. She also served as a Commissioner for the Just Transition Commission for Scotland and is an ambassador for Powerful Women. Colette is an active champion for the industrial transition of the oil and gas industry to a net zero future and is a dedicated role model for women in the industry.
Mike Winkel

Mike Winkel

Non-Executive Director
Mike joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in May2021. He brings a wealth of experience to the role, having served as the former COO of E.ON SE and CEO of its Renewables business. He has extensive experience in the global power and gas sector. Working for more than 25 years in the industry, Mike held numerous senior commercial, strategic and managerial roles in power generation, optimization and commodity trading. Mike holds a university degree in Business Administration from the Technical University of Dresden.
ANNA BELFRAGE

ANNA BELFRAGE

Non-Executive Director
Anna joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in August 2023. Anna has a 30-year tenure in finance, beginning her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers as an auditor, followed by several CFO roles predominantly in industrial companies in Sweden. She was also interim CEO of Beijer Electronics Group AB. Most recently, she served as the CFO, at the forestry conglomerate, Södra until 2019. Anna currently has a number of non-executive roles including Mycronic, Elopak and Ellevio. Anna has a Master in Economics degree from Lund University.
HANS MARET

HANS MARET

Non-Executive Director
Hans joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in August 2023. He is a Senior Industry Expert at Triton and sits on the Triton Debt Opportunities fund’s Investment Advisory Committee—a position he has held since 2013. Hans has also been a member of the Triton Mid Market fund’s Investment Advisory Committees, serving from 1998 to 2021. Before his tenure at Triton, he held positions at Sal. Oppenheim and Arthur Andersen. Hans is an alumnus of the University of Cologne, where he earned a degree in Business Administration.
Wenche Kjølås

Wenche Kjølås

Non-Executive Director
Wenche joined the DeepOcean Board of Directors in August 2023. She currently holds the COO position at Grieg Maturitas. Beginning her career at Touche Ross in 1986, Wenche subsequently was CFO of Kavli Holding and Grieg Logistics. In 2009, she became CEO of Grieg Maturitas, the holding company of Grieg Gruppen. Beyond her executive roles, Wenche has had a range of board roles including chair of Keolis Norge AS and MagseisFairfiled ASA. Wenche has an MSc in Business Administration and Economics from Norwegian School of Economics.

Our History

DeepOcean was established in 1999. With headquarters in Oslo, Norway, and main operational centers in Norway, the UK, the USA and Mexico, we support our clients worldwide.

In 2016, Triton, an international investment firm, became the largest shareholder in DeepOcean. Since its founding, Triton has completed more than 70 investments and supported more than 260 acquisitions, mainly involving medium-sized businesses within the industrial, business services, consumer and health sectors.

In 2017, DeepOcean acquired Searov, a France-based, Africa-focused ROV services company. The year after, we expanded further with the acquisition of the American ROV and tooling services company Delta Subsea.  

In 2021, DeepOcean entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Adepth Minerals, a company built for sustainable exploration and extraction of marine minerals.

The same year, DeepOcean also co-founded the Windstaller Alliance, which aims to provide the world’s most cost-efficient and complete product supply, fabrication and marine services offering within offshore wind and other offshore renewables segments.

Vision and values

A world-leading ocean service provider, enabling the energy transition and sustainable use of ocean resources.

Our values:
A
Attitude
we ACT with a can-do attitude, striving to achieve the best possible, long-term result for our people, customers and stakeholders.
C
Courage
we ACT with the courage to embrace new challenges, stop unsafe practices, always remain compliant, and shift boundaries with innovative solutions.
T
Teamwork
we ACT as one team, promoting the continuous development of one another in learning and evolving organization for the benefit of ourselves and our customers.

ESG and Sustainability

Creating value beyond financial results
We support the ocean industry in driving positive change, including transitioning to net-zero emissions. Our environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy sets out our target outcomes and the actions we will take to fulfill this commitment.

Our high-level ESG-priorities include:
Environment & Climate
  • Limiting the impact on marine environments
  • Reducing emissions from operations
  • Making climate change a priority
Corporate governance
  • Strengthening our commitment to sustainability at all levels, from the board and management down through our entire organization
  • Demonstrating integrity and transparency through ESG reporting and disclosure
  • Enforcing responsible business practices
Social responsibility
  • Protecting health and safety
  • Promoting diversity and equality
  • Respecting employee and human rights
Read more about our approach to ESG and Sutainability
Our approach

Why DeepOcean?

  • World-leading experts and unrivaled competence
  • Proven ocean services track record
  • Dedicated to reducing customers’ carbon footprint and operating costs
  • Fully integrated HSEQ approach
  • A technology-driven 'remote first' model
  • Access to extensive tool pool and subsea integration assets
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