Subsea support apparatus for supporting drive means, and driving apparatus incorporating such support apparatus

[0039] see figure 1 , a driving device 2 for driving an elongated element in the form of a hollow pipe 4 into the seabed as part of a drilling or coring operation, having a body 6 supported on mobile means in the form of a pair of mounted around the shaft 10 and powered by a hydraulic power unit 12 ( Figure 5 ) controls the form of track 8. exist Figure 4 and Figure 6 In a more detailed illustration of FIG. 1 , the track 8 is movable on an axis 10 relative to the body 6 between a respective extended position 12 and a retracted position 14 .

[0040] A drill frame 16 with a drilling motor 18 is supported by support means in the form of support arms 20 so that the position of said drill frame 16 relative to said body 6 is adjustable. This enables the drill rig 16 to be located within a well control module 38 ( image 3 ) or the top of a blowout preventer, or directly on the seabed during coring operations ( figure 2 ). Said drilling frame 16 can also be arranged around a