The technology group Wärtsilä is to supply the engines and other propulsion machinery for a new offshore construction vessel being built at the Cosco shipyard in China. The ship owner is Belgian operator Dredging International (DEME). This will be the first vessel of its kind to be fuelled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and in addition to the dual-fuel engines, Wärtsilä will also provide its LNGPac fuel storage and supply system and propulsion systems. The orders with Wärtsilä were booked in the fourth quarter of 2016 and in February 2017.

The world's first LNG fueled offshore construction vessel being built for DEME will be powered by Wärtsilä.

"The decision to utilise clean burning LNG fuel represents our commitment to provide environmentally sustainable solutions for our operations. Wärtsilä has extensive experience and vast technological know-how in this field, which is why we have selected them as our partner in this project," says Jan Gabriel, Head of newbuilding and conversion department at DEME.

"We are pleased to have been involved in this newbuild project from the conceptual design stage, since this enables our input on providing the most fuel efficient solution. We are also delighted that the Wärtsilä 46DF engine has been selected, as the dual-fuel version of this well proven and popular engine has only recently been introduced," says Arthur Boogaard, General Manager, Business Development Special Vessels at Wärtsilä.

This 210 metre long vessel, the 'Orion', will be powered by four 9-cylinder Wärtsilä 46DF dual-fuel electric propulsion engines, and two 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual-fuel engines. Wärtsilä will also supply two custom made retractable thrusters, four underwater demountable thrusters, the Wärtsilä LNGPac storage and supply system, as well as commissioning, site supervision and extended project management services. The Wärtsilä equipment is scheduled for delivery to the yard in the latter part of 2017.

The 'Orion' is expected to be delivered to the owners in 2018 and will undertake operations involving the installation of offshore windfarms in locations around the world.

DEME is a long-standing customer of Wärtsilä and has, in recent years, utilised Wärtsilä solutions for numerous vessels, including three hopper dredgers, a cable installation vessel, a cutter suction dredger vessel, as well as the 'Orion' offshore construction vessel.

Bollinger Shipyards has delivered the USCGC BENJAMIN DAILEY, the 23rd Fast Response Cutter (FRC) to the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard took delivery on April 20, 2017 in Key West, Florida and the vessel’s commissioning is scheduled for July 4, 2017 in Pascagoula, MS.

USCGC BENJAMIN DAILEY during builders trials in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

“We are pleased to announce the delivery of the latest FRC, the USCGC BENJAMIN DAILEY,” said Ben Bordelon, Bollinger President & C.E.O. “This FRC built by Bollinger Shipyards will be stationed in Pascagoula, MS. FRCs already in commission stationed in the mid-Atlantic and the South Eastern U.S. have seized multiple tons of narcotics, interdicted thousands of illegal aliens and saved many lives. In just one case, on February 28, 2017 the Coast Guard announced that the Coast Guard Cutter JOSEPH NAPIER, a Bollinger built FRC, had seized 4.2 tons of cocaine in international waters north of Paramaribo, Suriname, in the Atlantic Ocean.

The FRC program is a model program for government acquisition and has surpassed all historical quality benchmarks for vessels of this type and complexity. The results are the delivery of truly extraordinary Coast Guard cutters that will serve our Nation for decades to come. We are extremely proud that the Fast Response Cutters built locally on the bayou by Louisiana craftsmen are having such a major impact on our nation’s security. We at Bollinger Shipyards are looking forward to hearing of the heroic exploits of the USCGC BENJAMIN DAILEY as it joins the Coast Guard’s operational fleet.”

The 154-foot patrol craft USCGC BENJAMIN DAILEY is the 23rd vessel in the Coast Guard's Sentinel-class FRC program. The FRC has been described as an operational “game changer,” by senior Coast Guard officials. This will be the first FRC to be stationed in the 8th Coast Guard District in Pascagoula, MS. Previous cutters have been stationed in Florida, San Juan, PR, Cape May, NJ and Ketchikan, AK. To build the FRC, Bollinger used a proven, in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708. It has a flank speed of 28 knots, state of the art command, control, communications and computer technology, and a stern launch system for the vessel’s 26 foot cutter boat.

Each FRC is named for an enlisted Coast Guard hero who distinguished him or herself in the line of duty. This vessel is named after Coast Guard Hero Benjamin Dailey. Dailey, Keeper of the Cape Hatteras Life-Saving Station, was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal on April 24, 1885 for his exceptional bravery in one of the most daring rescues by the Life-Saving Service.

Leading supply base operator ASCO has joined forces with Ultra Electronics to deliver an important step forward in vessel monitoring services.

Working in collaboration with Ultra Electronics Surveillance & Security Systems (ULTRA), ASCO has been awarded a major, long-term contract by an international operator for the provision of integrated collision avoidance monitoring which improves marine safety.

Thanks to the alliance, Ultra Electronics will use multiple platform-based radar early warning systems (REWS) to detect and gather vessel data to address the risks posed to offshore installations by marine traffic. This data will then be sent onshore to be centrally monitored and co-ordinated by ASCO’s control room team which includes master mariners providing a 24/7, 365 day a year service. The data will also be tracked by offshore platforms and Emergency Response and Rescue Vessels (ERRVs).

ASCO UK CEO Craig Lennox commented: “This announcement is particularly timely in view of the ongoing efforts by the Marine Safety Forum’s 500m safety zone industry work group. Ultimately, our goal is to combine existing radar capability and supplement it with the innovative technology and skill of both organisations to create an interconnected network for the North Sea vessel market – and that is a very exciting prospect.

”Craig Revie of Ultra Electronics added: “By partnering with ASCO, we are offering an innovative partnership which will deliver significant benefits across the life of the project. Providing monitoring and safety systems that reduce manpower and increase opportunities for the efficient deployment of assets, ULTRA hope to expand this approach to other offshore operators in the North Sea and other regions to support cost saving during these challenging times.”

To find out more, click here.

Harvey Gulf International Marine announced that it has accepted delivery of its fourth LNG-powered Offshore Supply Vessel. The M/V HARVEY FREEDOM, built at Gulf Coast Shipyard Group in Gulfport, MS is 310’ x 64’ x 24.5’, U.S. Flagged Subchapter I and L, SOLAS compliant and capable of carrying 253,000 USG of Fuel Oil, 18,000 Bbls of Liquid Mud, 1,600 Bbls of Methanol, 10,250ft3 of Dry Cement and 78,000 USG of LNG fuel.

In addition to being powered by cleaner burning natural gas, the vessel is “ENVIRO+, Green Passport” certified by ABS, making her, and her sister ships, the most environmental friendly OSV’s in the Gulf of Mexico.

The HARVEY FREEDOM will be based out of Port Fourchon, LA and will immediately begin a five-year charter with a major oil and gas company.

Mr. Shane Guidry, Chairman and CEO of Harvey Gulf, commented “The delivery of the Harvey Freedom and commencement of her five-year charter shows Harvey Gulf’s continued commitment to the environment and the success of LNG power in our industry.”

On April 25th Damen’s award-winning and IMO certified InvaSave ballast water management system (BWMS) received its world premiere in front of an invited audience courtesy of Groningen Seaports at the harbour of Delfzijl and Eemshaven, The Netherlands. This marks the culmination of a seven-year programme to develop an effective mobile BWMS for use in ports.

The premiere was a joint presentation between Damen Shipyards, the designated operator MariFlex and Groningen Shipyards, as well as Royal Wagenborg. This was the first time that the InvaSave has been used by a commercial operator. The newly launched MV Egbert Wagenborg was brought alongside a quay and the containerised InvaSave 300 mounted on a barge in front of the bow. Ship-to-ship operator MariFlex then quickly connected the vessel and InvaSave using a convenient standard hose connection. The ballast water was then pumped out of the ship and passed through the InvaSave for treatment before being released into the harbour.

The operation was witnessed by representatives from port operators and authorities, ship owners and other maritime organisations. Anneke Schäfer, Director of Nature and Environment Federation Groningen, gave a speech welcoming the arrival of this new technology before officially turning it on. While the treatment process was taking place, the guests were also entertained by a water jet flyboard performing acrobatics in the harbour.

Philip Rabe, responsible for InvaSave sales at Damen, commented: “We’re delighted that the Damen InvaSave is finally operational in a commercial environment. It is a unique product and, in many cases, it enables ports to offer vessel owners a viable and cost-effective alternative to retrofitting on-board systems. And, in the event of failure of an onboard system, ports can offer owners a means by which they can access ballast water treatment at short notice, ensuring minimal downtime.”

The IMO-approved Damen InvaSave is the world’s first external ballast water treatment unit designed primarily for use in ports. The system receives ballast water from inbound vessels and treats it to IMO D-2 standard to eliminate potentially invasive marine micro-organisms. It can also deliver water treated to the same standard to outbound vessels. Its mobile, containerised format means that it can be operated from the dockside or from onboard a vessel alongside.

The new unit is now ready for operations at the harbour of Delfzijl and Eemshaven for vessels either without, or with malfunctioning, onboard BWTS capability. MariFlex also plans to have a second operational in Rotterdam ahead of the September implementation of the IMO Ballast Water Management Convention.

Harvey Gulf International Marine has announced the delivery of the first of two, large capacity Multi Purpose Support Vessels (MPSV) scheduled for 2017 deliveries, significantly enhancing the domestic Jones Act Fleet. This first vessel, the M/V HARVEY SUB-SEA, is a “best in class” Jones Act-qualified vessel that has the technical capabilities to efficiently, effectively and safely perform high quality field development activities that are currently being performed by a foreign fleet.

M/V HARVEY SUB-SEA

As U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) finalizes a decision to revoke previous letter rulings inconsistent with the lawful enforcement of the Jones Act that permitted the use of foreign-flag vessels for subsea construction, inspection and maintenance activities, this delivery of the M/V HARVEY SUB-SEA clearly demonstrates the capacity and capability of Jones Act qualified vessels to immediately perform the necessary work. This delivery is part of an industry-wide $2 billion investment since 2009 to ensure the Jones Act fleet has capacity to meet the needs of the offshore industry.

“Today ends the debate as to whether the U.S. Jones Act fleet of MPSV’s is capable of doing work that foreign vessels have been doing illegally in the Gulf for many years. The Harvey Sub-Sea has the size, crane capacity, deck space, accommodation, equipment, and station keeping capability equivalent to, or better than, her foreign competitors,” said Mr. Shane Guidry, Chairman and CEO of Harvey Gulf. “The Harvey Sub-Sea can perform a broad spectrum of subsea installations and removals, inspection, repair and floatel services. It can be equipped to lay umbilicals and cables and perform well-intervention and hydrate remediation operations. If there is a MPSV job needed in the Gulf, she can do it.”

Harvey Sub-Sea and sister ship, Harvey Blue-Sea, expected delivery July 2017

The M/V HARVEY SUB-SEA is a Jones Act compliant 327’ x 73’ x 29’ MPSV, equipped with a 250-ton knuckle boom, heave compensated crane with 4000’ of wire. The crane’s winch is below deck, expanding her lifting capacity and enabling loads of 107 metric tons to be delivered to water depths of 12,000 ft. The Sub-Sea has 150 berths, all in 1 or 2 person rooms, 13,000 sq. ft. of deck space and a 24’ x 24’moon pool. It has a S61 (Heavy) Helideck and meets ABS DP2, SPS Code and MLC 2006 certification requirements, among many others.

Bollinger Shipyards has announced the arrival of the drydock “Mrs. Jody” with a total lifting capacity of 4,000 tons at Bollinger Algiers.

Drydock “Mrs. Jody” arrives at Bollinger Algiers.

The announcement was made by Bollinger C.E.O. & President Ben Bordelon, “We are very pleased to announce the arrival of the “Mrs. Jody” at Bollinger Algiers. This drydock will position us well in the diverse customer markets that we serve, and will further enhance our position in the market with lifting capacity needed by our customers.”

The “Mrs. Jody” drydock measures 198-ft. x 76-ft. between the wing walls and has lifting capacity of 4,000 tons. Bollinger has two (2) commercial dry-docks located in Algiers with a combined lifting capacity of 5,800 tons.

Bollinger Algiers, a full service shipyard with an on-site machine shop, is located on the Mississippi River across from downtown New Orleans and provides service to both the inland and offshore marine transportation sectors.

At a time when other vessel operators are stacking vessels and reducing fleet size, Harvey Gulf International Marine continues to set itself apart by signing four non-cancelable, long term contracts for stacked vessels and taking delivery of two new vessels, as well as redelivery of vessel reconfigured for subsea services.

Harvey Gulf announced the signing of long term contracts for the MPSV Harvey Intervention, 175' FSV Harvey Hustler, 180' FSV Harvey Runner and 220' FSV Harvey Express. These charters follow Harvey Gulf’s recent agreement with Delta Subsea to outfit the previously stacked M/V Harvey Steeler to provide ROV and survey services.

The Harvey Intervention was redelivered in April, 2017 with increased accommodations, totaling 75 persons and a new NOV 165 MT AHC ultra deep-water knuckle boom crane. This crane gives the Intervention 180FT OF HOOK HEIGHT, more than any other US or foreign flagged MPSV crane vessel of its size, and capability of lowering sub-sea equipment to 3,600 meters.

Last week, Harvey Gulf took delivery of the 310' OSV Harvey Freedom, its fourth LNG OSV, which immediately joined its sister vessels and began a five-year charter signed with Shell Oil in May of 2016. The next day, Harvey took delivery of the 340' class MPSV Harvey Sub-Sea. The Harvey Sub-Sea extends the boundaries for her class of vessels. She has a NOV 250MT AHC Knuckle Boom Crane with 4000 meters of wire, all of which are stored below deck, increasing the working deck load parameters. The Sub-Sea sleeps 150 persons in 87 one and two man rooms with an amazing client suite. The moon-pool is 24’ X 24’with strengthening around the perimeter, enabling lowering equipment to be fitted in the area. The vessel is fitted with a 1” thick steel deck with a rating of 10mT per square meter and coffer dams below that allow for efficient welding and cargo securing cargo. This vessel truly demonstrates Jones Act vessels are here and ready for service.

Harvey Sub-Sea and sister ship, Harvey Blue-Sea, expected delivery July 2017

Harvey Gulf CEO Shane Guidry commented, “We are very thankful during this downturn that our clients still demand safety, operational excellence, and the newest technology, all of which only Harvey Gulf can deliver. We've worked 1363 days without a recordable incident and met our goal zero for the last 3.75 years. We have also achieved a 99.2 percent uptime utilization on contract, limiting mechanical downtime to .08 percent. No other company in our industry performs like we do at Harvey. My executive team and I are involved in every aspect of our business, day and night, and the numbers show it. We produce more EBDITA than all of our publically traded peer group combined. And we've done this quarter over quarter, with our SG&A approximately 70 percent less than the average of our publically traded peer group, enabling us to deliver the best service at the right price.

The technology group Wärtsilä has signed an agreement with Eidesvik Offshore to install a hybrid system with batteries on board of its vessel Viking Princess. It will become the first offshore supply vessel in which batteries reduce the number of generators on board. The new energy storage solution will improve engine efficiency, generating fuel savings and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Viking Princess

Viking Princess provides supplies to oil rigs in the North Sea and Barents Sea. The 5-year old vessel runs on four LNG-powered Wärtsilä engines. Depending on the ongoing task and weather conditions, the engine load varies between 90% and 20%.

First offshore supply vessel to replace a generator with batteries

The new energy storage solution replaces one of the vessel's four generators and can provide balancing energy to cover the peaks, resulting in a more stable load on the engines. In essence, the technology is similar to that in hybrid cars: it keeps the engine load from dipping and re-routs the surplus to charge a battery, which in turn can fill in when needed.

Cutting-edge sustainable development for shipping

As the operating profile of supply vessels is very variable, there is significant potential for fuel savings through improved engine efficiency. In the dynamic positioning mode, when the battery is used as power redundancy and the engine runs at its most efficient load, the fuel saving potential is 30%. Consequently, the Viking Princess may cut CO2 emissions by 13-18% per year, depending on the operating conditions.

"Eidesvik and Wärtsilä have had a long and fruitful cooperation since 2003, when "Viking Energy", the world's first LNG driven supply vessel, was launched. The cooperation was developed further with the instalment of batteries to support the generators of "Viking Lady" in 2015. Now "Viking Princess" becomes the first offshore supply vessel, where one of its generators will be fully replaced with batteries. We are grateful to both Wärtsilä and the NCE Maritime Clean Tech, who made this important and progressive cooperation possible," says Vermund Hjelland, Vice President Technical development, Eidesvik Offshore.

Important signal for the whole industry

Enova SF, a Norwegian state enterprise, owned by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) supported the project with 6.5 million Norwegian crowns to accelerate sustainable energy production in the maritime sector. Wärtsilä will install the new hybrid system in September 2017.

"The Hybrid Energy System is a forward looking solution that not only reduces fuel consumption and emissions, but also contributes to safer and more efficient operations. We are confident that this project will have a positive effect on the industry. There is an increasing focus in shipping to reduce emissions and we believe that ship owners will continue to install hybrid solutions - both on existing vessels and new builds," says Cato Esperø, Sales Director, Wärtsilä Norway.

On May 10, 2017, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued Customs Bulletin & Decisions, Vol. 51, No. 19, ‘Withdrawal of Proposed Modification and Revocation of Ruling Letters Relating to Customs Application of the Jones Act to the Transportation of Certain Merchandise and Equipment Between Coastwise Points’.

The International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) immediately welcomed this Decision and noted that it would protect the economy of the United States and protect against significant American job losses in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). This Decision represents a pivotal step in protecting the U.S. National economy by promoting the offshore oil and gas industry. In addition, IMCA noted that it looked forward to working with stakeholders in the future with regard to how the Jones Act should be interpreted to foster American jobs and prosperity.

Now IMCA has published a detailed statement providing more information and dispelling certain misstatements. “There have been misleading reports that the Decision puts foreign interests first to the detriment of the national and economic security of the United States including U.S. companies and jobs,” explains IMCA’s Chief Executive, Allen Leatt.

Allen Leatt, IMCA’s Chief Executive

“In short, nothing could be further from the truth. We would like to set the record straight and to demonstrate why the Administration’s decision was not only a reasoned decision, but the correct one. Equally, in view of the fact that this whole matter was raised and then withdrawn previously in 2009, we feel it important to put on record why the CBP Decision was the right course of action.

“Our statement sets out the facts on which as an industry we can move forward. This debate is not about foreign employers under-cutting the wages of U.S. workers - which is certainly not the case in any event. Instead, it is about different markets in the offshore industry using very different types of vessels performing vastly different jobs. In short, it is the difference between the types of vessels capable of engaging in deepwater construction activities and the types of vessels capable of engaging in transportation activities.

“The offshore industry is suffering from one of the deepest downturns ever seen, and mariners across the entire globe are badly impacted by the lack of demand for our collective services. This is not about putting foreign interest first above that of U.S. companies and U.S. mariners. Let us not lose sight of the situation we find ourselves in, rather, let’s find a common-sense approach for all sides to coexist as we have since the offshore industry started.

“In conclusion, the Decision puts U.S. jobs, U.S. security, the U.S. economy, and the sovereignty of the United States first, not foreign interests, by making sure these U.S. interests are not harmed by hasty action without understanding the potential consequences as outlined in our published statement.”

Harvey Gulf International Marine announces that it has secured a charter extension for the MPSV HARVEY DEEP-SEA through December 31, 2018. Combined with its announcement of 4 long-term vessel charters last week, Harvey Gulf continues to buck the “spot-work” only trend that has been pervasive throughout the ongoing industry downturn for vessel operators.

Harvey Deep-Sea

The DEEP-SEA is a Multi-Purpose Support Vessel equipped with a 165-ton NOV heave-compensated, knuckle boom crane, 15x18ft moon pool, S92 Helideck, and has capacity for 2 ROV’s and 70 persons on board. She is also equipped with liquid mud and dry bulk tanks for traditional OSV operations and, consistent with Harvey Gulf’s environmental protectionist reputation, has Enviro+ and Green Passport certifications.

Harvey Gulf CEO Shane Guidry commented, “The extension of the DEEP-SEA’s charter through December 2018 further reinforces Harvey Gulf’s model of designing vessels for our customers’ needs and demonstrating operational excellence through minimal downtime, continually achieving our “Goal Zero” safety record, and protecting the environment. The result is that our customers want to keep our vessels.”

The Global Marine Group (GMG), a market leader in offshore engineering, is reporting a successful first five months of 2017 with a strong outlook for the rest of the year. All key assets from the GMG fleet are currently mobilized, either supporting maintenance zone agreements around the world, or on installation, maintenance or repair contracts.

“As we head into the summer months, we are extremely pleased about our robust activity level, which we feel is a reflection of our high performance standards, reputation and strong relationships across the industry,” said Ian Douglas, CEO of the Global Marine Group. “We are consistently mobilising quickly to deliver high-quality, on-time and on-budget solutions to all our customers’ demands experience, proven know-how and the resources to get things right first time. We have the personnel, vessels and technology to meet these demands.”

CWind, the group’s offshore power focused business, has its 18-strong fleet of Crew Transfer Vessels (CTVs) and another eight chartered vessels, busy supporting clients on key wind farms across the UK and Europe with a variety of subsea and topside solutions. In February of this year it was announced that CWind would incorporate the resources and power cable capabilities of its parent company, GMG, to expand the breadth of services it offers to wind farm owners and developers.

In addition to completing major scopes of work at the Godewind Offshore Wind Farm using a DPS-2 vessel, CWind has also recently utilised a key asset in the GMG fleet, C.S. Sovereign, to complete back-to-back power cable repairs. First, CWind finished the successful repair of a vital power cable that reconnected the Isles of Scilly to mainland electricity, and then another repair commission in the North Sea.

CS Recorder, a recent addition to the group’s fleet, has just completed remedial burial work on the CIEG (Channel Islands Electricity Grid) power cable between Guernsey and Jersey. The project benefitted from the mobilisation and deployment of another of the group’s assets, the Q1000 jet-trenching Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), which offers 1000hp of total installed and variable jetting power. The Q1000 is ideal for trenching pipelines, umbilicals and cables to a burial depth of 3m at a speed of up to 400m per hour. CS Recorder will shortly begin work on another installation project.

Further afield, the group’s telecoms focused business, Global Marine, who have installed over 300,000km or 21% of all subsea cable across the world, has the Networker and her crew currently primed for a fibre optic cable installation project between Karimun and Batam in Malaysia. The Networker is the first purpose-built cable-working barge in South East Asia, and one of the largest vessels of her kind, ideally designed to deliver projects in shallow waters and narrow corridors.

With a maiden voyage that takes her to the deep waters of Ireland’s Atlantic margin and the far North of the Barents Sea, Fugro Venturer is the newest of Fugro’s successful purpose-designed, standardized survey vessels, originally formulated in 2013.

Fugro Venturer

The 72-meter vessel is a platform for technological innovation, where Fugro’s trademark technologies such as OARS (centralized command centers with direct access to offshore survey projects), Back2Base (enabling large amounts of survey data to be sent from offshore vessels to onshore processing centers and clients) and ROAMES (a powerful asset management solution streamlining subsea operations) are radically changing information delivery.

Fugro has secured a significant confirmed work backlog so that a campaign of site and pipeline route surveys, for clients including Aker BP, following commissioning and survey trials. Fugro Venturer is contracted to conduct simultaneous analogue/digital surveys, 3D high resolution seismic and environmental sampling and shallow geotechnical operations. An increased level of weather tolerance will ensure a highly reliable operational program.

Specialized equipment enables sampling in water depths of up to 3,500 meters and a permanent AUV hangar houses a Kongsberg Hugin 1000 autonomous underwater vehicle. The vessel can host a multitude of ROV platforms and the specially designed hull form and propulsion systems ensure acoustically quiet and economical running at higher than standard survey speeds.

Phil Meaden, Regional Director Fugro Europe Marine, explains how the new multi-role vessel will support the company’s marine site characterization and asset integrity contracts: “The Fugro Venturer provides an exceptional range of survey solutions. She will be equally at home in the offshore wind farms of Europe, where Fugro is pioneering innovative UXO and UHR3D seismic surveys and in oilfield inspections, where our latest solutions include fast ROV and fully autonomous inspections.”

Ocean Yield ASA ("Ocean Yield") has agreed to acquire two Platform Supply Vessels ("PSVs") from BP Shipping for a total consideration of USD 105.4 million. Both vessels are on long term charters to Aker BP ASA ("Aker BP"). The two vessels, "NS Orla" and "NS Frayja", were delivered in September and December 2014, respectively, and entered into 15 years bareboat charters starting as from delivery of the vessels. The bareboat charter rates are USD 17,253 per day per vessel, which gives a contribution to annual EBITDA of USD 12.6 million.

NS Orla

The vessels are expected to be delivered to a fully owned subsidiary of Ocean Yield in June 2017. The acquisition will be financed by a combination of debt and equity and Ocean Yield has received an offer for a senior secured loan facility of up to USD 65 million with semi-annual instalments based on an annuity profile and a tenor of 7 years.

Aker BP is a publicly listed E&P company with exploration, development and production activities on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Measured in production, Aker BP is one of the largest independent oil companies in Europe.

Ocean Yield ASA's Chief Executive Officer Lars Solbakken said in a comment: "We are pleased to announce the investment in two additional vessels on long term charter, as it allows us to continue to grow and further diversify our portfolio, adding a strong counterparty with a market capitalization of approximately USD 5.4 billion."

Yorkshire UK headquartered engineering company Romica has completed a major deal to supply deck equipment for a state-of-the-art new geophysical and geotechnical survey vessel operated by global offshore survey specialist Fugro.

Beverley based Romica provided equipment for the 2455 gross tonne Fugro Venturer. The 71.5 metre vessel is one of the most advanced geophysical and hydrographic survey ships in the world and is built to undertake a range of geophysical survey work for sectors like oil and gas and renewables.

Romica managing director Bob Turner said the job was a complex and demanding one as it required bespoke engineering solutions.

“Romica has supplied equipment to more than eight Fugro geotechnical survey vessels in the last 10 years and our team brings collectively more than 50 years experience to the sector,” he said. “We drew on all that expertise to provide a range of A frame and launch systems to suit a variety of seabed sampling and sensitive measurement devices. Our range included coring handling systems, side scan winches, sub bottom profiler winch systems and gun array handling systems.”

Bob said the Romica team worked closely with Fugro on the project for more than three years designing equipment then manufacturing it at its plant in Romania before transporting it overland by truck to the shipyard and then helping to install it.

“We have built an understanding of how Furgo operate and what they want," he said. "We sit down and listen to them and then try and find solutions to what they require. This approach of working as part of their team and not just being remote and handing over an off the shelf product makes Romica different and gives us a competitive edge. Very few companies have our experience or are prepared to work as closely as we do developing the bespoke solutions the customer wants. No company knows as much as the owner about their vessel, that is why we sit down with Fugro and listen to their requirements. This approach delivers the best engineering solutions.”

Bob said Romica is actively searching to win more work in the geotechnical ship building sector.

“We established a manufacturing hub in Romania 13 years ago which draws on a large maritime engineering skills base enabling us to undertake a broad variety of work,” he said. “The last 12 years have seen Romica develop as a world leading manufacturer of marine lift equipment. This has been based around a strategy of developing relationships with survey operators and investing time helping them find optimum solutions for the handling of their survey systems. We believe that despite the downturn in oil and gas activity we can pursue a similar strategy in other sectors of the marine and lift equipment marketplace.” Romica’s Romanian manufacturing plant recently acquired accreditation with DNV GL, the world’s leading classification society forits repair and manufacturing operations which it operates from its 7000m2 fabrication facility.

Statoil ASA and AET, one of the world’s leading petroleum and chemical tanker owners and operators, announce that they are extending their partnership in the North Sea shuttle tanker sector. Statoil has awarded a long-term contract to AET, a subsidiary of Malaysian energy shipping group, MISC Berhad, to operate two specialist DP2 offshore loading shuttle tankers (OLSTs) on long-term charter. These new vessels will be in addition to the two AET DP2 ships currently on charter, in the same area, for Statoil.

The shuttle tanker Eagle Barents currently on charter for Statoil from AET.

These new vessels are in addition to the two AET DP2 ships currently on charter in the same area for Statoil. The two existing DP2 tankers are owned and operated by AET Sea Shuttle AS (AETSS), a joint venture company formed in 2012 that is also 95% owned by AET and 5% by Norwegian ADS Shipping.

The two twin skeg 125,000dwt tankers will be built by Samsung Heavy Industries for delivery in 2019 and will be contracted to Statoil for operations both in oilfields on the Norwegian Continental Shelf of the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and the southern Barents Sea as well as on the UK Continental Shelf.

Built to a superior specification with a fatigue life based on 30 years of operations in the North Sea, they will be fully capable of working in the harshest of weather conditions. Each will be equipped with winterization features, high power thrusters, shaft generators and the latest generation of bow loading system.

With a focus on energy efficiency, the shuttle tankers will be built with LNG dual-fuel for main and auxiliary engines and also an option to be fitted with a volatile organic compound (VOC) recovery system. Other environmental innovations will maximize fuel efficiency and minimize emissions. When in operation from 2019, these two DPSTs are expected to be the world’s first LNG fueled DPSTs and most energy efficient.

“Statoil is pleased to award this contract to AET and their partners and thereby deepen and increase our cooperation within shuttle tanker operations. The agreed newbuild state-of-the-art DP2 shuttle tankers will strengthen Statoil’s position for safe, efficient and cost competitive transportation of offshore loaded crude oil production to our customers. The fuel efficiency features built into these vessels, including LNG duel fuel capabilities, will significantly reduce operational costs and climate emissions. As such this contract is strongly aligned with Statoil’s sharpened strategy,” says Statoil’s senior vice president for asset management in Marketing, Midstream and Processing, Grete Birgitte Haaland.

Captain Rajalingam Subramaniam, chairman, AET Sea Shuttle AS (AETSS) and president & CEO, AET, said:

“We first forged a partnership with Statoil in 2012 when we were awarded a long-term contract to operate two state-of-the-art shuttle tankers in the North and Barents Sea. I am delighted that Statoil has recognized and endorsed the quality of our operations in this most demanding of environments by giving us a further opportunity to support their business with two additional state-of-the-art DPSTs. We believe, as part of the MISC Group, our strategic partnership and our innovative solutions gave us the edge over other operators in the North Sea. Statoil is global leader in this region and I am confident that we will deliver on the trust they continue to place in our capability to deliver flawless operations in this challenging region. We are proud to be extending our partnership with this world leading oil company.”

In 2012, AET formed a joint venture company - AET Sea Shuttle AS - 95% owned by AET and 5% owned by Norwegian ADS Shipping, to own and operate two North Sea DP vessels. The two new ships will also be owned and operated by the same joint venture partners. OSM Maritime Group will provide the lead technical management, supported by the MISC Group, during the newbuilding.

ADS and OSM group chairman, Bjørn Tore Larsen said:

“This is a great opportunity for us to extend our successful partnership with AET. We have been operating in this region for many years and extending the joint venture cements our relationship both with AET and Statoil. I firmly believe that the combination of technical, operational and commercial skills delivered through the joint venture will continue to provide Statoil with an ocean transportation solution that is second to none”.

OSM Maritime Group will provide the lead technical management, supported by the MISC Group, during the construction of the vessels.

M-Tech Offshore A/S, is a Danish joint venture company equally owned by NT Offshore A/S and Maritech International LTD, owning and operating the CLV SIA, an efficient handy-sized DP-2 cable laying vessel, which is configured for worldwide inter-array and subsea power cable installations and maintenance, with additional facilities on-board to accommodate for installation of smaller subsea cables, including fibre-optics.

The CLV SIA flies the Danish flag, is a fully SOLAS classed vessel, equipped with efficient cable lay spread, 3 turn-table cable tanks, deck winches, A-frame & cranes and accommodates SIMEC's work-class trenching ROV "Seagma", suitable for inspection, survey and burial operations on up to 3m trenching depth, on maximum operating water depth of 1000m.

Additional modular deck spreads are also available for support operations such as pre-lay grapnel runs and route clearances. The 500m2 vessel's deck has been strengthened for LARS, making it an ideal ROV support platform, whist the on-board survey electronic spread, moon-pool and side mounted equipment can be utilised for cable route survey operations.

In addition to cable laying capabilities, the CLV SIA has modern and comfortable accommodation for 50 passengers with crew and can be utilised as a multipurpose support vessel, capable of handling challenging environmental conditions.

Acquisition and subsequent upgrade of the CLV SIA follows the 2016 announcement that Maritech International LTD with NT Offshore A/S had formed the Joint Venture company M-Tech Offshore A/S. Maritech's 25 years of experience in the subsea cable industry, coupled with NT's long-term presence in the North Sea, is now backed by a strategically positioned vessel management office in Esbjerg, Denmark.

Damen Shiprepair & Conversion (DSC), a part of Damen Shipyards Group, has announced the acquisition of the Keppel Verolme shipyard from Keppel Offshore & Marine.

DSC’s acquisition of the yard follows an initial agreement made between the two parties in April of this year. From 1 July, the Keppel Verolme shipyard, including its 250 staff members, will continue operations under the Damen flag.

“We look forward to joining forces with the Verolme yard and its people. The facilities and personnel are complementary to our existing organisation. This acquisition will enable us to serve our existing clients even better while opening up new opportunities,” says Durk-Jan Nederlof, Managing Director of Damen Shiprepair & Conversion.

With three dry docks – the largest of which measures 405 x 90 metres – and almost 2km of quay capacity, the Verolme yard, located in Rotterdam’s Botlek harbour, will significantly expand DSC’s portfolio. DSC already operates eight repair and conversion yards in the Netherlands and another eight abroad.

Purpose-designed for a range of roles including deep-water salvage operations, deep-water pipelay and construction as well as a saturation diving capability for up to 24 divers in two bells, Shanghai Salvage Bureau’s new ship is a testimonial to the demand for top-rated technology and equipment of the highest reliability.

Recently, GE’s Marine Solutions (NYSE: GE) has been chosen by Shanghai Salvage Bureau (SSB), one of the largest rescue and salvage companies in the world, to provide a suite of marine technologies including power and propulsion equipment, dynamic positioning (DP) and automation and control systems to its newest deep-water dive support vessel (DSV). The vessel will become the world’s first deep-water DSV with a multi-saturation diving system. Once delivered, it will enable diving operations to be performed at depths of up to 500 meters and salvage work at 6,000 meters.

“This vessel will be the best of its class anywhere in the world. The sophisticated electrical system, including an innovative closed-ring arrangement of the propulsion switchboard, is a top priority for us to achieve our design goals. Undoubtedly, reliability of the technology onboard the ship is of paramount importance, and that requires an experienced partner,” said Mr. Huang Yan, project director, SSB. “We are pleased to work with GE to ensure that the deep-water DSV will be one of the most advanced of its kind in the world.”

Particularly in the tough offshore environment and in challenging weather, keeping the vessel “on station” and enabling smooth deep-water operations makes the DP system a critical component.

The vessel will feature GE’s latest technology—SeaStream™ DP system (Class 3). Using multidirectional thrusters and sensors to monitor real-time wind, current and wave conditions and automatically activate the propulsion units to counteract the environmental forces, the technology will enable the ship’s position and orientation to be safely and efficiently controlled.

GE’s deep-domain expertise in DP has also extended its capability to include fuel usage optimization. GE’s Ecomagination™ energy-efficient mode uses advanced algorithms to optimize vessel heading and optimize the number of generators needed for operation, further reducing power consumption, operational costs and emissions.

In addition, the vessel will be powered by an electric power and propulsion system, including GE’s 4,656-kilowatt generators, switchboards and medium-voltage frequency drive propulsion controllers as well as a vessel automation and control system, all configured for optimum power and propulsion performance. The main propulsion switchboard will be arranged in a closed-ring configuration to get to maximum efficiency and availability.

The ability to provide the full spectrum of marine solutions—from power and propulsion to navigation and positioning and automation and control—within one integrated package is also a key reason why GE was chosen.

“Thanks to the GE Store, we are able to provide a suite of marine technologies through a blend of high competence in one integrated package,” said Tim Schweikert, president & CEO, GE’s Marine Solutions. “This is one of the landmark projects in the offshore marine industry, and we are excited to be part of the journey”

Shell Offshore, Inc. announces that its affiliate, Shell E and P Offshore Services B.V., will exercise a contractual right to purchase the Turritella floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel from SBM Offshore. The vessel is contracted for the Stones deep-water development in the Gulf of Mexico, which began production last year. Shell and SBM will work over the next several months to achieve a safe, smooth transition of the vessel operations.

Transitioning the ownership and operations of the vessel to Shell affiliates allows the company to pursue additional efficiencies and achieve cost improvements to deliver shareholder value at Stones with a continued commitment to operational excellence and safety. The Stones development is the world’s deepest offshore oil and gas project and is scheduled to deliver approximately 50,000-barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) by the end of this year.

The Turritella FPSO has a daily production capacity of approximately 60,000 barrels of oil and 15 million cubic feet of natural gas and fits well within Shell’s global, deep-water portfolio, which includes operations in the Gulf of Mexico, Brazil, Nigeria, and Malaysia. Competitive, deep-water oil resources are a growth priority for Shell with global production expected to reach more than 900-thousand boe/d by the early 2020s.

Currently, Shell has three additional Gulf of Mexico deep-water projects under construction – Appomattox, Kaikias, and Coulomb Phase 2 – as well as options for additional subsea tiebacks and Vito, a potential, new hub in the region.