Renewable Energy Industries News

UAE-based shipyard Drydocks World has signed a contract with Norway-based Kanfa to deliver a topside module for a floating production storage and offloading vessel.In what will be the first collaboration between Drydocks World and Kanfa, the M10 module will be placed on the main deck of the FPSO.The module will be used to process crude oil received from oil wells, which will be dewatered and stabilised to meet export quality specifications. Weighing approximately 700 tons, the process module is scheduled for delivery in Q2 2023.Kanfa…

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) eleven million people were employed in renewable energy worldwide in 2018. This compares with 10.3 million in 2017.As more and more countries manufacture, trade and install renewable energy technologies, the latest Renewable Energy and Jobs – Annual Review finds that renewables jobs grew to their highest level despite slower growth in key renewable energy markets including China.The diversification of the renewable energy supply chain is changing the sector’s geographic footprint. Until now, renewable energy industries have remained relatively concentrated in a handful of major markets…

UAE-based Gulf Marine Services (GMS), a provider of self-propelled self-elevating support vessels (SESVs) serving the offshore oil, gas and renewable energy sectors, said it secured a new contract for one of its Small Class vessels.The new charter is for 12 months (including options) and is scheduled to commence shortly. The vessel will be supporting well intervention activities for a national oil company (NOC) in the MENA region.Duncan Anderson, Chief Executive Officer of GMS, said:  "This new award, which follows last month's announcement of three long-term contracts, is further evidence of a continuing market recovery. The sustained higher oil price is having a positive impact in our sector…

A new European research project seeks to revolutionize the shipbuilding sector by replacing steel with composite materials for the construction of more efficient large length ships. FIBRESHIP is an ambitious project that will allow for the construction of light commercial vessels, passenger and leisure transport and oceanographic vessels more than 50 meters in length using fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composite materials. It is one of the largest innovation projects funded by the EU with a budget of €11 million, of which €9 million is funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 Programme. The project involves 18 international entities representing the European shipping and shipbuilding industry from 11 countries including Cyprus…

Cathelco will provide a marine growth prevention system (MGPS) for the latest in a series of jack-up drilling rigs to be built by Lamprell, the UAE based  leading provider of fabrication, engineering and contracting services to the offshore and onshore oil and gas and renewable energy industries. This will be the ninth MGPS to be supplied to Lamprell for jack-up rigs constructed at its Hamriyah facility. The order was won by Cathelco Middle East FZC based in Sharjah which was set up in 2015 to provide sales and engineering support for customers throughout the region.

As the prolonged slump in energy prices continues to drag on a number of oil and gas and maritime players, word has it that Harkand Group has succumbed, according to staff reports and a report on www.bbc.com. The company was a high-flyer building an enviable fleet of advanced tonnage. Established in 2012 and headquartered in London with operations bases in Aberdeen, Houston, Mexico, and Ghana, global subsea IRM group Harkand has been expanding its business operations rapidly throughout North America…

Zentech Incorporated of Houston, Texas, USA signed contracts with CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding Company Limited for the construction of (2) Z-210 Mobile Offshore Units. These contracts were finalized based on the Letter of Intent received by CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipyard on September 23,2015. The Z-210 is a self-propelled, self-elevating, DP-2 capable, ABS Class, high temperature (55 deg Celsius) rated 4-legged mobile offshore unit capable of operating in water depths of up to 280 feet. The wide array of unique and innovative features of the Z-210 has already captured the attention of operators and one of these units has already been secured by an undisclosed operator in Asia!

International inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM) company Harkand aims to be a $1 billion company. MR’s Tom Mulligan recently met with John Reed, the company’s CEO, to discuss his vision for the future and how Harkand aims to achieve its goal of being the leading subsea IRM and light construction contractor globally. Established in 2012 and headquartered in London with operations bases in Aberdeen, Houston, Mexico, and Ghana, global subsea IRM group Harkand has been expanding its business operations rapidly throughout North America…

In connection with the Nor-Shipping Conference and Exhibition held last month in Oslo, Remi Eriksen, the newly appointed Group President & CEO of DNV GL, took the opportunity to present himself to the international maritime media. Eriksen will take over on August 1, 2015, from retiring Henrik O. Madsen. Eriksen has a solid 22 years track-record in leading positions within the group, gaining extensive international experience in the oil & gas, maritime, and renewable energy industries, and has led the operations in Asia, Europe and the Americas, based in Oslo, Houston and Singapore.

Remi Eriksen has been appointed as the DNV GL Group’s new president and CEO, succeeding Henrik O. Madsen, who will retire August 1. The DNV GL board of directors began an executive search and selection process in October 2014 to find and appoint Madsen’s successor due to his planned retirement after more than 30 years of service with DNV GL, the last nine years of which was spent as group president and CEO. DNV GL said candidates from many countries, both inside and outside of the organization, and both men and women, were considered.

Technology and dynamic mission profiles have driven change in the defense industry, Hydro Group Plc Managing Director Doug Whyte, explores the changing paradigm of submarine programs, an evolving market he has experienced first-hand, with over 30 years at the helm of his own innovative subsea design and manufacturing group. My original business partner, Mike Redstone, previously worked for Vickers Slingsby which was involved quite extensively with the Ministry of Defense (M.O.D.). At that time, in the late seventies, close involvement with the M.O.D. was commonplace.

SpeedCast International Limited (SpeedCast) says it has been awarded a multi-year contract from Jan De Nul Group, a leading dredging, marine construction, and specialized services  company in the offshore oil & gas, and renewable energy industries. The new satellite service provides high-performance broadband connectivity for mission critical data and voice applications on vessels operating throughout the world. With this latest contract, SpeedCast will increase the number of vessels served to a total of 44 of Jan De Nul Group’s vessels. SpeedCast designed the communications solution from the ground-up to meet the unique requirements of Jan De Nul Group, which include operational and ship management applications, as well as crew communications.

Robert “Bob” “Sonny” Fogal, Jr., one of the icons in the offshore oil and gas industry, has decided to retire from front-line work as Zentech’s Director of Business Development. Zentech’s President Ramesh Maini noted on August 28, “All the serious players in our industry know Bob and his many accomplishments. Fogal has spent his entire career in the rig building business, starting with Levingston Shipyard and subsequent work with major designers and builders in the U.S. as well as Singapore, Japan, China, Brazil, India, South Africa and the Middle East.

Lamprell a leading provider of diversified engineering and contracting services to the onshore and offshore oil & gas and renewable energy industries, has been awarded a contract valued at approximately US$ 64 million.by Millennium Offshore Services group (MOS) to convert its 'MOS Frontier' into an accommodation support vessel. The three-legged Type MLT116C jackup rig is a multi-purpose jackup unit capable of operating in water depths of 300 feet and it will be converted into an accommodation support vessel for the purpose of accommodating 290 personnel.

ACE Winches announced post tax profits of £6.2m for 2012, a 15% increase on the previous year. Turnover at the Aberdeenshire-based group soared to £31.1m in the year ended October 31, 2012, a 42% increase on the previous twelve months, with around three-quarters (74%) of the company’s business generated from international trade. ACE Winches is a company in the design, manufacture and hire of winches, marine deck machinery and the provision of associated hire personnel for the offshore oil and gas, marine and renewable energy industries.

Leading independent offshore survey company UTEC has announced the acquisition of Geomarine Ltd. UTEC – which is based in Houston, Texas and has offices around the world including Aberdeen, Scotland – has acquired Geomarine Ltd which is headquartered in Newcastle-upon-Tyne with operational offices in Bath, England and Singapore. The move will capitalize on a natural and highly complementary fit between the two companies, providing a unique opportunity to enhance and increase the range of services offered. Commenting on the acquisition, UTEC CEO Martin O’Carroll said: “The addition of Geomarine to our team marks a significant step forward in the UTEC group’s overall growth ambitions.

Zentech, Inc. has acquired the former Derrick Barge 23 and renamed it ZEE RIG 3. “We intend to upgrade the vessel in two phases, first for use as a crane barge with increased lifting capacity, and later as a much larger self-propelled jackup vessel for wind farm installation service,” said Zentech President Ramesh Maini. The vessel is being prepared for conversion work at a Gulf Coast shipyard. The vessel was purchased from Bohen Crane and Equipment Repair LLC. In its current configuration, ZEE RIG 3 is 400 Ft. long, 100 Ft. wide and has a hull depth of 29 Ft.