OceanXplorer may sail to PH for marine research in 2025

RESEARCH VESSEL The OceanXplorer, shown in this undated photo, is equipped with cutting-edge technology to survey different kinds of marine environments. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

SINGAPORE — OceanXplorer, the world’s most advanced exploration, scientific research and media production vessel, may sail for the Philippines as early as next year as part of its three- to five-year mission to study the waters of Southeast Asia, deemed one of the world’s most biodiverse yet threatened oceanic regions.

Mattie Rodrigue, science program director of OceanX, said in a media briefing here that discussions have started about a collaboration with the Philippine government to bring OceanXplorer to the country and conduct scientific work in the area.

“We are hoping that after our mission is completed in Malaysia and our talks progress successfully with the Philippine government, we will be able to get the vessel in as early as next year,” Rodrigue told visiting journalists from Southeast Asia that toured OceanXplorer here during the recently concluded Philanthropy Asia Summit 2024.

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OceanXplorer has been docked since March in Singapore, which it has designated as its central meeting point in the region.

Seeking local partners

From here, the research and media production vessel is scheduled to sail for Indonesia, where it will conduct extensive research from May to August this year, before moving on to Malaysia later this year.

In both countries, OceanX will partner with local government agencies and the scientific community to study the local ocean environment. The findings will help inform science, policy and economic decisions.

OceanX hopes to do the same with the Philippines, where it plans to partner with local scientists and government agencies responsible for the stewardship of marine resources to develop the study mission.

“All scientists are invited to submit research proposals, scientific proposals. Then we will review those proposals along with our government colleagues and select and develop the mission based on the local scientists’ needs,” Rodrigue said.

“It is really important for countries and scientists in Southeast Asia to be studying and developing their own scientific capacity and research objectives especially because globally there is such an underfunding of deep sea scientific research,” she added.

OceanXplorer contributes significantly to research and education as it is fully equipped with cutting-edge technology to survey different kinds of marine environments, including deep-sea, shallow and coastal habitats.

Its equipment include two submersibles that can accommodate three people and can go down to 1,000 meters below sea level; a remote-operated vehicle that can go further down to 6,000 meters, research laboratories and next-generation DNA sequencing abilities that can, for example, allow them to determine the presence of elusive and endangered species.

OceanX is an initiative of Dalio Philanthropies founded by Raymond Thomas Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s biggest hedge fund that serves institutional clients such as pension funds, foreign governments and central banks, as well as charitable foundations, family offices and high net worth individuals.