DESIGNS FROM NORWAY
Norwegian designers, meanwhile, continue to expand their portfolio of designs for deepwater.
Norway's Vik & Sandvik has design ed a series of platform supply vessels and anchor handling supply vessels being built by Tidewater in the U.S. and China. The first of four VS 480 designs, the 260 ft Miss Jane Tide was delivered in the first quarter of this year by Tidewater's own shipyard, Quality Shipyard LLC, Houma, La.
Delivery of the M/V John P. Laborde and the four subsequent 282 ft AHTS vessels being built by Yantai Raffles Shipyard in China has been pushed back six months.
Ulstein rebuilds its portfolio
After selling its non-shipbuilding assets including its well developed UT offshore supply vessel design portfolio in May 1999 to Vickers plc (now part of Rolls-Royce), Norway's Ulstein
Mekaniske Verksted Holding ASA has developed an entirely new line of of anchor handling tug supply vessels, multipurpose ROV vessels and cable laying vessels marketed by Ulstein Design AS. The group also includes Ulstein Verft, the shipbuilding division.
"While we prefer to build to our own designs, we'll build to whatever design the owner wants," states Ulstein Verft's Oyvind Olsen. "But we see our design portfolio as a means of getting our foot in the door early and as a crucial factor in being a market leader."
Ulstein Verft's current backlog now stands at two vessels, both Ulstein A101 design anchor handling tug supply vessels, one for Solstad Shipping and the other for Olympic Shipping A/S.
While Ulstein does have ambitions to design for other shipyards, an agreement with Rolls-Royce prevents Ulstein from doing so until Feb. 2004. The expiration of the non-compete agreement would clear the way for Ulstein designs to be built anywhere in the world, including the U.S.
One of the latest deliveries from the shipyard is the 90.1 m x 20.5 x 9 m Normand Mermaid, an Ulstein P103 design Multifunctional DP3 ROV vessel for Solstad Shipping AS.
The design is developed in co-operation with Solstad and is well equipped with diesel-electric propulsion power, two main azimuth thrusters, two bow tunnel thrusters, and one swingup compass thruster, all with frequency converter drives.
Ulstein P103 is designed and arranged with a number of features for a wide range of offshore operations such as:
- Highest classification of dynamic positioning, DP III.
- Deployment and recovery of two independent work ROV (SWL 25 T) from hangar to each side.
- Sea floor installation, service, and maintenance work with subsea crane through moon pool or over ship side.
- Subsea construction work through moon pool by deck mounted tower.
- Large work moon pool with excellent sea damping capability.
- Considerable capacities of liquid cargos and deck cargo as Platform Supply Vessel.
Rolls-Royce rolls on
Meanwhile, the UT portfolio design of offshore vessels remains as popular as ever. One of the most recent deliveries is the 67 m Highland Bugler, a PSV built for Gulf Offshore N.S., Ltd., Aberdeen.
The hull of the vessel was built by Aker Brattvaag's subsidiary, Aker Tulcea, in Romania.
PREVIOUS
