Anchorhandling News

Rolls-Royce is to deliver deck machinery and engines to an arctic Anchor Handling Tug Supply vessel (AHTS) to be built by Vard for Bourbon Offshore Norway. The contract has a value in excess of £17 million for Rolls-Royce. The deck machinery delivery from Rolls-Royce will consist of anchor handling winches, secondary winches, auxiliary winches, anchor handling cranes and a wide range of safer deck operation equipment. The engine delivery consists of two main engines and three main generator engines. AHTS vessels are built to handle anchors for oil rigs and perform rig moves.

With the July delivery of the tug Northwind, the Rotterdam-based firm Avra Towage is now operating a fleet of six tugs with a seventh under construction. Three of the company’s original five-boat fleet have Cummins main engines, so it was an easy choice to go with Cummins engines for the Northwind. However, where the others have 2,400 hp and 32 tons of bollard pull with a pair of 38-litre Cummins main engines (tugs South, West, and East), the new boats are powered by a pair of the larger 50-liter Cummins KTA50-M engines.

Brazilian state oil company Petrobras has awarded Brazil Offshore Services (BOS) long term charters to operate one vessel under the Petrobras 12 000 contract and another under the Petrobras 15 000 contract. BOS is a Brazilian joint venture company owned 50/50 by Farstad of Ålesund in Norway and Petroserve of Brazil. BOS in turn has selected Rolls-Royce design and equipment packages worth altogether about NOK 270 million for the two vessels. Both will be to the UT 722L design, but specifications vary to suit the two operating contracts, each of which has an eight year period. Estaleiro Itajai in Brazil has been chosen as the builder of these vessels, which will be of a very high standard. Deliveries are scheduled for 2005.

Farstad Supply AS has been awarded charter contracts for Far Strider and Far Superior for one year with two one-year options for each of the vessels. The contracts are for Team Marine in Aberdeen for whom the vessels have operated for five and two years respectively. The existing contracts end in December (Far Superior) and January (Far Strider). The new contracts will start in January 2004. Both vessels are platform supply vessels and Far Strider was built in 1999, and Far Superior in 1990. In addition Farstad Shipping ASA has also reached an agreement to extend the contract for Far Fosna for three years from October 2005 till October 2008.

Farstad Shipping ASA has, through its wholly owned subsidiary Farstad Supply AS, been awarded charter contracts for the two anchorhandling vessels Far Crusader and Far Centurion by the Brazilian oil company Petrobras. These vessels are of the design ME 303 (13040 BHP) and built in 1983. The new charter period, of two years duration, begins after the expiry of the present contract to Petrobras March 2002. The total contract value is approximately $17 million.

Brazil Offshore Services (BOS), which is a joint venture between Farstad Shipping ASA and Petroserv SA, formally announced the contracts for three different classes of anchorhandling vessels, each of 8 years duration in the present Petrobras tender. With the first of three contracts awarded to BOS by Petrobas on April 15, 2002, it is now formally confirmed that BOS was awarded the other two contracts. Total contract value for the three contracts for Petrobras is approximately $183 million. The contracts are expected to start around the turn of the year 2005/2006.

SMIT Salvage achieved the pollution-free refloating of the product tanker Nino today. This vessel grounded on South Africa’s Wild Coast, around 60 miles north east of East London, on July 18, while carrying a part cargo of 7,700 tonnes of gasoil and gasoline. The vessel went aground at a very remote location. SMIT obtained a LOF/SCOPIC salvage contract and immediately mounted a major casualty and pollution prevention operation. Vessels mobilised in the first few hours included the Wolraad Woltemade – one of the world’s largest salvage tugs, the anchorhandling tug Pentow Service, the environmental patrol vessel S.A. Kuswag 1 and an inshore survey vessel (required to survey the shallow waters around the grounded Nino).

SMIT Salvage has successfully completed the salvage of the tanker Irina 2. This 15,063 gt vessel ran aground 40 miles off Oro Bay, Papua New Guinea, on July 29 after departing Kimbe with a cargo of palm crude. This casualty was one of three groundings SMIT responded to in August. The Irina 2 grounded in a lagoon. SMIT, working under a Lloyd's Open Form agreement, mobilised salvage personnel and equipment and two tugs - one of which connected up to the casualty. On August 3, the 1983-built vessel was pulled free and towed to a nearby deeper anchorage within the lagoon. The salvage team then investigated an exit route. A small tug was used to survey the area, as the lagoon contained numerous shallow areas and unmarked reefs.