Recent years have seen the formation and growth of the global deepwater offshore industry, which has been driven by increased demand for oil and gas stemming from years of economic growth, reduction in production of existing hydrocarbon fields, and depleting shallow-water reserves. These factors have encouraged operators to invest billions annually chasing this offshore frontier and the development of floating production and subsea systems as solutions for deepwater hydrocarbon extraction.

Currently, 15% of total offshore oil production is carried out in deep waters, and this proportion is expected to rise to 20% in the next few years. The harsher marine environment and need for subsea production systems in remote deepwater developments opens a set of challenges and opportunities for the control theorist and engineer.