Smit International News

The salvage operations of the container vessel MV SSL Kolkata that had caught fire last month, is continuing in rough weather conditions with 2- 4 metre swells. The vessel is grounded at about 8 nautical miles off the ecologically sensitive Sundarbans since the 13th of last month when its cargo area had caught fire following an explosion. All 22 crew members were   rescued by the Indian Coast Guard. The Directorate General of Shipping and its allied office, Mercantile Marine Department, Kolkata, Govt. of West Bengal, the Indian Coast Guard and various authorities have been constantly monitoring the developments as the salvage efforts continue.

The International Salvage Union has selected Roger Evans as its new Secretary General. He will succeed Mark Hoddinott who is retiring later this year after six years in the post.   Evans is expected to join ISU during July to begin the handover with Hoddinott before assuming the role at some point in the fourth quarter.   Evans is a former master mariner who sailed on a variety of vessels including reefers, bulk carriers, container and general cargo ships. Evans came ashore in 1985 to join Smit International and has served the Dutch offshore, towage and salvage firm in a number of roles including as contracts manger in London for Smit International, senior contracts manager for Smit Salvage in the Netherlands and, since 2013, as Manager for Smit Salvage in the U.K.

In 1842, 65-year-old Fop Smit began using a 140hp paddle steamer to guide vessels safely into the Port of Rotterdam, and thus L. Smit & Co. was born. The company went through various stages of expansion, notably adding salvage services to its operations in the mid 1900s, and gradually grew into an internationally-operating outfit offering a wide range of maritime services. Today known as SMIT, a member of Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. since 2010, the company has been providing maritime services, including towage, salvage, transport and heavy lift for nearly 170 years.

Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd’s (Keppel O&M) specialized shipbuilding arm, Keppel Singmarine Pte Ltd (Keppel Singmarine) has clinched three newbuilding contracts totaling about $98.5m. The first contract was awarded to Keppel Singmarine by Dutch dredging and marine contractor, Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis) for the construction of a 159-metre long rock dumping fall pipe vessel to be completed in late 2011. Rock dumping fall pipe vessels are capable of depositing large…

The owners of the 26,800 dwt bulk carrier Full City, which ran aground whilst in ballast at Langesund off the southern coast of Norway in heavy weather on July 31, say the majority of the approximately 1,200 tons of bunker fuel on the vessel remains on board. Meanwhile, they are continuing to focus their priorities on containment and limitation of any potential environmental damage in the wake of the casualty. This is being done in full co-operation and co-ordination with the Norwegian authorities. Response efforts have so far focused on the containment and recovery of the oil which has escaped from the vessel’s bunker tanks into the sea.

Australian shipbuilder Strategic Marine is making the most of the current high demand for offshore vessels in international shipping markets by building eight aluminum crew boats on a speculative basis. In a move which is expected to boost its revenues by over $40m, the company will build six 40m vessels at its shipyard, and two 52m crew boats at its new Mexican yard at . Western Australian marine services company Samson Maritime has already ordered two of the new 40m crew boats after signing a contract worth $9.8m.

SMIT announced that it is expecting a growth in net profit of around 35 percent for 2007 compared to 2006. On July 27, SMIT announced that it was expecting a considerably higher profit over 2007 than the net profit of EUR 75 million over 2006. The company said all divisions performed well, in particular the Salvage Division due to a high activity level during the second half of this year. In addition a number of salvage jobs from previous years have been settled. Settlements for the “Thunder Horse”, “Development Driller 1” en “Arctic 1” have not yet been concluded and therefore have not been taken into account.

Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M) has secured a total of S$172 million worth of contracts through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Keppel Singmarine Ltd and AMFELS in USA. Keppel Singmarine, a specialized shipbuilder, will build four Anchor Handling Tug/ Supply (AHTS) vessels for European based company, Groupe Bourbon and four harbor tugs for Keppel Smit Towage. Deliveries of the eight vessels are slated progressively between the third quarter of 2004 and first quarter 2006.

Smit International awarded a contract to Damen Shipyards Gorinchem for the construction of a new terminal tug, a Damen Stan Tug 3509 for delivery end of this year under yard Nr. YN511606. Built as an enlarged Damen Stan Tug 2909 under standard rules of Bureau Veritas, the vessel will have an overall length of 35.3 m, a beam o.a. of 8.9 m, a draft of 4.3 m and a displacement of 420 tons with empty tanks. The twin screw tug will be powered by two Caterpillar 3516B TA/A main engines driving, via Reintjes WAF 872/7.087:1 gearbox, bronze Promarin fixed pitch propellors within 2,500 mm v.d. Giessen Kort nozzles. The total ouput will be 2950 kW (3959 bhp) at 1600 rpm. A bollard pull in excess of 52.8 tons is anticipated, with a free running speed of approximately 12.7 knots.

FBM Babcock Marine has been awarded an order for six 86-ft. aircrew training vessels by SMIT International (Scotland) Ltd. The order follows the U.K. MOD award of a contract following competition under the Public Private Partnership Program to SMIT International for the provision of aircrew training and firing range safety services. The FBM Babcock Marine vessels will be used by SMIT International to train military aircrew in marine survival techniques and be delivered within 16 months. The vessels will be funded by way of a structured lease with Lombard Corporate Finance, a member of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc. The vessels are an adaptation of FBM Babcock Marine's 86-ft.

The integration of Keppel Corporation’s offshore and marine businesses has contributed to a $16 million (S$29 million) swamp barge contract clinched as a result of the synergy of the offshore and specialised shipbuilding divisions. Furthermore, with the integration and Keppel’s sharper focus on specialised shipbuilding, especially support vessels, the offshore and marine group has also won a new contract worth S$21 million from Keppel Smit Towage for three 60-ton tugs which are due for delivery in mid 2003. These tugs, a utility boat and two terminal tractor tugs, will be deployed by Keppel Smit Towage in Brunei for charter to Brunei Shell Petroleum Company.

Smit International is in talks to buy Canada's Rivtow Marine, a harbor towage service and transport firm active in Canada and the U.S. No financial details of the planned takeover were immediately available. Smit International also said it would boost its stake in Belgium's Salvage & Towage Union to 49 percent from 26 percent for an undisclosed sum. In addition the company said it was discussing further developing a strategic alliance with Salvage & Towage Union, which owns seven percent stake of Smit International.

Having added a unique multi-purpose offshore installations vessel and a powerful floating crane to its fleet, the Smit International Group is increasingly busy on installation heavy lift and heavy transport projects associated with FPSOs. Smit Pioneer, formerly a LASH carrier, was acquired and converted by Smit in 1999. The vessel represents a new concept for multi-purpose offshore installation tasks. This large, dock-type vessel is designed and equipped to remain on station for extended periods, having an unusually high degree of self-sufficiency. The multi-purpose vessel's primary roles include: installation of moorings, diverless tie-ins, well servicing, flexlay, manifold and riser installation, ROV support and long haul cablelay.

Although Smit International graced the marine industry with its presence in 1975, the company actually began in the mid-18th century as a shipbuilder, which would eventually evolve into its current state as a diversified marine service provider. Known as Smit International Singapore, the company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Smit International BV — a Dutch company listed on the Amsterdam stock exchange. Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Smit formed a regional office in Singapore as a strategic move for expansion in the Far East. It was quick planning on the part of the company as it noted the region's ever-growing significance, as well as its large potential as a maritime hub at that time.

When news broke regarding the explosion onboard and sinking of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk in August 2000, the world watched with wonder as a massive rescue effort was launched to save sailors believed to have survived the disaster. With the effort to save lives failed, the ensuing weeks and months saw a political storm, as accusations of circumstances surrounding the sinking led to charges (as it turns out, unfounded) that an errant mine or ship of Western origin had run into the 9,000 ton Oscar type 2 nuclear sub. Once political fervor and emotions subsided, the question stood: What exactly should be done with the ship, which housed the bodies of 118 sailors, two nuclear reactors, and a slew of Russian military secrets.

Keppel Singmarine Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M) has secured orders for three offshore support vessels (OSVs) and two tugboats for about $80 million. The vessels will be progressively delivered to their owners up to end 2006. Keppel Singmarine will build one ice-class OSV for anchor handling and supply purposes for new customer, the Russian oil company Lukoil Kaliningradmorneft (LUKOIL). When completed at end 2006, the vessel will be deployed in the Caspian Sea region. The other two OSVs are for repeat customer Groupe Bourbon (Bourbon). With these two 100-tonne bollard pull anchor handling tugs, Keppel Singmarine’s orders from Bourbon will add up to a total of seven vessels.

During a recent series of meetings, the shareholders of SmitWijs Towage – Smit International (50%) and SvitzerWijsmuller (50%) – have reconfirmed their commitment to the ocean towage business and their efforts to remain the market leader in this segment. As of August 29, Managing Director Aart Brand will be leaving the joint venture due to reaching retirement age. Brand will continue his services in the capacity of Senior Advisor until the end of this year, and will be succeeded by Jord Veldman. Mr Veldman currently holds the position of Regional Manager Americas with SvitzerWijsmuller. Hans van der Donck, General Manager of SmitWijs, will continue in his present function.

Smit International announced that its mid-year results saw profits soar 60% from EUR 29.7 million to EUR 47.5 million, driven by an extremely busy six months and good results in its salvage division, and strong pricing and utilization in its Transport & Heavy Lift Division. "The exceptionally high results in the second half of 2006 were continued in the first half of 2007, with our net profit rising 60% relative to the first half of 2006,” said CEO Ben Vree. “Particularly the more volatile Salvage and Transport & Heavy Lift Divisions put in a good performance. The contribution of the Terminals Division decreased slightly in the first half of this year due to the transfer of our subsea activities to the Transport & Heavy Lift Division.

A maritime inquiry into the loss of the Norwegian supply vessel Bourbon Dolphin, which capsized and sank off Shetland with the loss of eight lives, is due to open at a Norwegian court. Smit International has issued a statement about the sinking of the Bourbon Dolphin, which capsized on April 12th whilst performing offshore services for the drill platform Transocean Rather. Subsequently, SMIT Salvage was contracted by Bourbon Offshore Norway AS, to render salvage services to Bourbon Dolphin. The mobilization of the necessary salvage personnel, craft and equipment started immediately. A salvage team of seven members was flown to the Shetland Islands and the anchor handling tug Zeus, equipped with a diving spread and salvage equipment departed to the casualty from Den Helder, the Netherlands.

Smit International reported that its profit for 2006 will amount to approximately EUR 75 million, almost twice the net profit compared to the year 2005 (EUR 38.3 million). During the second half of last year the harbor towage activities in Rotterdam and Antwerp exceeded expectations. This was mainly due to strong winds. The Salvage division also experienced an extensive workload during the second half of last year. In addition a number of settlements have been reached. The Salvage division’s results were substantially higher than the historic average. The projects ‘Thunderhorse’ and ‘Artic I’ have not been settled yet. In the second half of 2006 the Transport & Heavy Lift division experienced a high utilisation, mainly due to the high workload from the Salvage division.

Smit International NV announced that net earnings for 2005 have risen by nearly 40% to EUR 38.3 million. Despite facing a heavier tax burden of 30% (up from 24% in 2004), the divisions Harbor Towage, Terminals and Transport & Heavy Lift achieved better results in comparison to 2004. The Salvage division performed well above the so called historical average. SMIT has served the maritime sector for more than 160 years. • Harbor Towage: harbor towage services and related maritime services. terminals. • Salvage: salvage, wreck removal, environmental protection and consultancy. marine support to a variety of civil and offshore projects.

Russia said it will announce final plans next week to raise the Kursk submarine, which sunk last year with 118 crew on board, a senior cabinet minister said on Friday. Russian authorities have promised since the nuclear-powered submarine sunk that they would raise it from its position about 43.5 miles north of the Russian port Murmansk and 328 ft. (100 m) beneath the surface of the Barents Sea. The date and technical details for the project will be set on Monday, officials said. They added that guarantees for government funding would also be provided Plans previously called for the wreck to be raised in August or September. The Kursk…

The task of clearing debris from the wreck of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk will be completed today, the Russian Navy said. The Kursk sank in the Barents Sea last August with the loss of all 118 crew. "Work on clearing the debris from the vessel will be completed this afternoon as planned," a spokesman for Vice-Admiral Mikhail Motsak, who is coordinating the recovery operation, told Reuters from aboard the warship Severomorsk. An international salvage team aboard the high-tech dive support ship Mayo conducted the clean-up operation using robots controlled from the deck. The support ship will leave for the Norwegian port of Kirkenes later on Wednesday to swap cleaning equipment for cutting gear, the navy spokesman said.