New International Partnership Set to Speed Up Offshore Wind Installations in US
Danish offshore marine services company Maersk Supply Service and U.S. vessel owner Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) have partnered up for the construction and operation of a windfarm feeder concept specifically designed for Maersk Supply Service’s next-generation wind installation vessel (WIV).The purpose-built feeder spread includes two tugs and two barges to be delivered in 2026. They will be owned and operated by ECO and constructed by Bollinger Shipyards – the largest privately-owned shipyard group in the United States.As a key component to the installation process…
Edison Chouest Inks Deal for Battery-equipped PSV
Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) has entered into a contract with an oil major to install battery systems aboard one of its Jones Act platform supply vessels (PSV), the U.S.-based shipowner announced Monday. With the long-term deal in hand, ECO said it is working alongside its affiliate Marine Technologies to install the battery-on-board (BoB) system aboard one of its ECO 312-foot Class PSVs, with options for additional systems.ECO has become the latest owner active in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico to turn to greener battery power solutions as market demand for fuel-saving and emissions-reducing technologies continues to grow in the U.S. and abroad.
USS Independence on Time & on Course
The decommissioned aircraft carrier, USS Independence has just passed by Costa Rica on its final mission, from Bremerton and onward to Brownsville, Texas. This is the first leg of a long 16,000 mile journey that will take the 60,000-ton super carrier around the tip of South America, transiting the Strait of Magellan and eventually into EMR Group’s International Shipbreaking Ltd. yard in Brownsville, Texas. USS Independence left on her final journey on Saturday, March 11th from the Kitsap Naval Base in Bremerton, Washington to Brownsville, Texas and is expected to take just under three months.
Offshore Service Providers Drive Robust GoM Boom
Ongoing infrastructure and newbuild activity not expected to let up. Modern, sophisticated and quality tonnage arrives at just the right time. Vessel builders are ramped up for strong demand from the Gulf of Mexico, where oil drilling is very soon expected to return to pre-Macondo levels. Utilization rates for offshore vessels are rising in the GoM, along with associated dayrates. Three Louisiana leaders--Edison Chouest Offshore in Cut Off, Hornbeck Offshore Services Inc. in Covington and Harvey Gulf International Marine in New Orleans--are engaged in aggressive newbuild programs.
Subsea Services New J/V: FMC Partners Edison Chouest
FMC Technologies and Edison Chouest Offshore team up in subsea services joint venture with new base in Houston, Texas. Utilizing the subsea technologies, tooling and expertise of FMC Technologies, and the vessel, port logistics and ROV operations of Edison Chouest Offshore, the new company intends to provide integrated vessel-based subsea services for offshore oil and gas fields globally. Services to be offered by the joint venture include equipment intervention, riserless light well intervention, plug and abandonment and other services. The company's objective is to provide cost-effective solutions to enhance the customer's ability to initiate…
Chouest, New Series of Diesel Electric OSVs
The Edison Chouest Offshore family of companies announced plans to design and build a series of a dozen 300-ft., 5,300 DWT deepwater diesel-electric offshore supply vessels. “Since 2003, the core of our newbuild program has been a series of 42 new generation, 4,750 DWT deepwater 280-ft. offshore supply vessels,” said Gary Chouest. “Those vessels revolutionized the industry and have performed remarkably well for our many customers in the U.S. But with the 280-ft. series winding down (30 currently in operation, another 12 under construction and scheduled for completion by the second quarter 2010), Chouest sought a different and more diverse option for its customers. “Our diesel-electric design complies with all new emissions standards and IMO regulations.
ECO Expands Aggressive Newbuild Campaign
Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) announced plans to build several new anchor handling towing supply vessels (AHTS), as well as more than a dozen new generation 280-ft. platform supply vessels (PSV) in its affiliated shipyards in the U.S. All vessels are scheduled to join the ECO domestic fleet within the next three years. Construction highlights feature seven new anchor handlers: Two (2) 348-ft., 21,600 HP new generation anchor handlers and five (5) 288-ft., 16,000 HP vessels. Also slated for construction are fourteen (14) 4,700 deadweight ton PSVs. All the vessels are slated for delivery between February 2007 and mid-2010, and will be constructed at ECO affiliated shipyards: North American Shipbuilding (NAS) in Larose…
Port, Chouest Pretrial Hearing Set
Attorneys in a dispute between the Port of Galveston and a Louisiana offshore industry company will meet Feb. 22 to set the stage for trial. In February 2005, the port filed a $91 million breach of contract lawsuit against Edison Chouest. The port claimed Edison Chouest reneged on a proposal signed in 2000 to construct an offshore energy industry service terminal on Pelican Island. Edison Chouest, which did not begin work on the proposed CPort Galveston terminal, asked the Galveston Wharves Board of Trustees, which oversees the port, in 2004 to get out of its agreement. The trial is set for July 10 before Judge David Garner in the 10th State District Court. At the Feb. 22 jurisdictional hearing, attorneys will present arguments, and Garner will rule on a key technical issue.
