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Tidewater News

03 Oct 2023

Offshore Wind: Support Vessel Bottlenecks Loom in the US

(© David Maddock / Adobe Stock)

An offshore wind industry is growing in the U.S. with an aim to meet the Biden Administration’s goal of 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind by 2030, and eventually 110 GW by 2050.But as is the case for any new industry that is building up, there are going to be bumps along the way. The U.S. offshore wind industry is currently grappling with rising costs amid unprecedented supply chain issues and inflation, among other issues.One of the main challenges unique to offshore wind is a shortage of vessels.

25 Sep 2023

Tidewater Inks Global Support Deal with Caterpillar

(Photo: Caterpillar)

Tidewater Inc., the world's largest fleet operator in the offshore support vessel (OSV) industry, has signed a Global Value Agreement (GVA) with engine manufacturer Caterpillar to ensure comprehensive parts, service, monitoring and maintenance support to help reduce total cost of ownership (TCO) and increase uptime and availability.Tidewater’s fleet of more than 200 OSVs, including platform supply vessels (PSV), anchor handler towing supply vessels (AHTS), offshore tugs and crew boats…

14 Sep 2023

Port of Aberdeen's Shore Power Project to Dramatically Cut Vessel Emissions

Credit: Port of Aberdeen

Port of Aberdeen said Thursday it had been awarded funding from the UK Government for a multi-million-pound project to design and deliver the first large-scale landside and vessel-side shore power system in Scotland."The demonstrator project will cut vessel emissions at the berths by more than 80% compared with burning marine fuel and save in excess of 60,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent over the next 20 years," Port of Aberdeen said.Crucially, the port said, ‘Shore Power in Operation’ will pave the way for the roll-out of green shore power across North Harbour.

31 Aug 2023

The Resurgence of the OSV Industry: From Trough to Triumph

Photo Copyright: Arlid/AdobeStock

The offshore supply vessel industry has weathered a tumultuous decade characterized by a prolonged trough that tested the resilience of vessel owners. However, the tides have turned, and the industry is now experiencing a strong and much-awaited revival.The offshore supply vessel industry has weathered a tumultuous decade characterized by a prolonged trough that tested the resilience of vessel owners. However, the tides have turned, and the industry is now experiencing a strong and much-awaited revival.While long seen as a derelict industry by investors…

05 Jul 2023

KOTUG to Operate Dual-fuel Methanol Tugs on Canada’s West Coast

(Image: KOTUG)

In 2021, Trans Mountain, on behalf of shippers for the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (TMEP), awarded KOTUG Canada Inc. a long-term contract to provide escort towage services for tankers that load crude oil at Trans Mountain’s Westridge Marine Terminal.Trans Mountain operates Canada’s only oil pipeline servicing the West Coast of Canada providing tidewater access to foreign markets for Canada’s petroleum resources.Under the agreement, KOTUG Canada, which is a partnership between KOTUG International B.V.

05 Jul 2023

Solstad Offshore Wraps $580M Sale of PSV Fleet to Tidewater, Exiting the Business

©Solstad Offshore

Norwegian offshore vessel operator Solstad Offshore has officially exited the platform supply vessel business.Namely, the company on Wednesday completed the sale of its PSV fleet to the U.S. offshore vessel firm Tidewater for approximately $580 million. The transaction, first announced in March, was completed Wednesday, with all 37 platform supply vessels, primarily used for transporting essential supplies and equipment to offshore oil and gas platforms and drilling rigs, successfully delivered to Tidewater…

29 Jun 2023

Tidewater Appoints Dick H. Fagerstal Chairman of the Board

Source: Tidewater

Tidewater has appointed Dick H. Fagerstal non-executive Chairman of the Board.In addition, the Board has reduced the size of the Board from nine to eight members.Fagerstal stated, “I am honored to assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Tidewater at such an exciting time for our industry. I believe the company is well positioned to capitalize on the increasing global offshore activity with recently closed (and pending) additions to its fleet of offshore vessels.“Having been…

28 Jun 2023

Sale of 37 PSVs to Tidewater: Solstad Offshore's Exit from PSV Sector Imminent

©Solstad Offshore

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Solstad Offshore has revealed the expected completion date for its previously agreed sale of 37 platform supply vessels to the U.S. offshore vessel firm Tidewater.Solstad Offshore in March said it would sell 37 PSVs to Tidewater in a move that will mark Solstad Offshore's exit from the platform supply vessel sector.In a statement on Wednesday, Solstad Offshore said the transaction was scheduled to be completed in "week 27." Given that we're currently in week 26 of 2023…

19 Jun 2023

Engine Overhaul for Tidewater PSV in Aberdeen

Highland Chieftain (Photo: Royston)

Marine engineering and propulsion specialist Royston has completed the rapid overhaul of a diesel power plant system onboard a Tidewater Marine operated platform support vessel.Royston engineers undertook the 18,000 running hours service of a Scania DI12 harbor generator, which is onboard the 80m length Highland Chieftain, while the vessel was moored in Aberdeen.The work involved the generator being disassembled with manifolds, turbo, rocker gear, critical pumps, pistons, liners…

18 Oct 2023

Powering the North American Maritime Fuel Transition

(Photo: Harvey Gulf)

Offshore service vessels, along with workboats serving harbors and inland rivers, have embarked on an industry-wide voyage toward reduced emissions of greenhouse gasses. Professor Craig Philip, a faculty member with Vanderbilt University’s Center for Transportation and Operational Resilience (VECTOR) and former CEO of Ingram Barge Company, provides this context: “The Maritime Sector has long provided shippers with the most fuel-efficient and sustainable freight transport option…

27 Apr 2023

Larry Rigdon Retires from Tidewater Board

Larry T. Rigdon (Photo: Tidewater)

U.S.-based Tidewater, one of the world's largest owners of offshore support vessels, announced Thursday that Larry T. Rigdon has chosen not to stand for reelection as non-executive chairman and will retire from the board at the company's annual stockholders meeting on June 26, 2023.Rigdon has served as a member of the company's board of directors since July 2017, and as non-executive chairman of the board since October 2019.Dick H. Fagerstal, Tidewater's lead independent director…

14 Mar 2023

Solstad Offshore Offloads Far Sabre AHTS

©Solstad Offshore

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Solstad Offshore has sold the anchor-handling tug supply vessel Far Sabre for an undisclosed fee.The 2008-built vessel has been in layup since 2019. Delivery of the vessel to the new owner took place on Tuesday. Solstad did not say who the buyer was."The sale of the vessel will result in a minor positive accounting effect to be reflected in 1Q 2023," Solstad Offshore said.Earlier on Tuesday, Solstad said it would redeliver two anchor handlers to owner Ocean Yield upon the expiration of their current contracts.

07 Mar 2023

Solstad Offshore to Exit Platform Supply Vessel Business. Agrees to Sell 37 Vessels to Tidewater

©Solstad Offshore

Norwegian offshore support vessel owner Solstad Offshore has agreed to sell 37 platform supply vessels to the U.S. firm Tidewater for $577 million.The sale will mark Solstad Offshore's exit from the platform supply vessel sector. Ongoing PSV charter parties will be transferred to Tidewater. Solstad will offer management services to Tidewater in a transition period to facilitate a smooth transfer for the parties and the customers.The offshore employees associated with the PSV Fleet will be offered employment with Tidewater.

23 Jan 2023

Marine Services Exec Chad Verret Starts New Consultancy

Chad Verret

Chad Verret, a former executive in the offshore marine services business, has started a new marine consultancy called Verret Marine Consulting, LLC. The Louisiana-based company has offices in the Houston area and in Morgan City, La. and will be focused on areas such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel, alternative fuels and marine based liquefaction projects.Verret got his start in the offshore industry nearly 40 years ago, signing on with Tidewater Marine as a deckhand in 1985…

17 Jan 2023

Bollinger Hires Naquin as Sales Director

Andy Naquin (Photo: Bollinger Shipyards)

Bollinger Shipyards announced it has hired Andrew “Andy” Naquin as Director of Sales, where he will report to Eric Bollinger, Vice President of Sales, and will assist in leading the sales team. The announcement was made by Ben Bordelon, Bollinger’s President and Chief Executive Officer, who said, “For over 76 years, the Bollinger family has worked hard to deliver our customers the highest quality service and solutions in our industry. At the heart of those relationships is trust.

09 Jan 2023

Middle East Ship Repair Yards Remain Center Stage

Asyad Dry Dock in Duqm, Oman, was previously Oman Drydock Company. Its new name reflects its ownership by Oman shipping and logistics group, Asyad. Image courtesy Asyad Dry Dock

In the 45 years since the Arab Shipbuilding & Repair Yard (ASRY) opened on reclaimed land in Bahrain, the Middle East has become one of the world’s ship repair hotspots. A broad range of shipyards now service both regional and global markets.Regional yards have a ready market, with hundreds of offshore rigs working across the region together with the service ships that support them. Then there are thousands of tankers and gas carriers that arrive each year to load energy cargoes for far-flung destinations.

13 Oct 2022

Tidewater to Expand Columbia River Barge Service

Tidewater Barge Lines, Inc will expand its regional barge service on the Columbia River after being awarded grant funding from the U.S. Department Maritime Administration (MARAD).The $4,168,759 from MARAD, combined with nearly $2 million in matching funds from Tidewater, will provide two new low and zero emission cranes that will enable the loading of additional solid waste containers on barges for shipment from southwest Washington to eastern Oregon.“This award will allow Tidewater…

31 Oct 2022

MARAD Awards Nearly $39 Million in Marine Highway Grants

© raoyang / Adobe Stock

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) awarded nearly $39 million in grants to 12 marine highway projects across the Nation under the America’s Marine Highway Program (AMHP). The funding will help expand marine highway services on the United States’ navigable waterways to reduce congestion, alleviate supply chain bottlenecks, and move goods more quickly from ships to shelves.“At a time of record demand for goods, it’s more important than ever to…

27 Sep 2022

Tidewater Orders NES Battery Package for PSV

Tidewater, one of the world's largest owners of offshore support vessels, will upgrade one of its platform supply vessels (PSV) North Pomor with a new battery package.Norway-based Norwegian Electric Systems AS (NES), a subsidiary of HAV Group ASA, announced it will provide the battery package and associated control system for battery charging for the retrofit project. The 2013-built North Pomor sails under the Norwegian flag and is already equipped with diesel-electric propulsion.NES said its teams in Bergen and Ålesund will design, assemble and test the battery package and control system, for scheduled delivery in the third quarter of 2023.NES has not disclosed the value of the contract…

15 Sep 2022

Inland Waterways Report: Columbia-Snake River System

(Photo: Tidewater Transportation and Terminals)

It’s amazing to consider that a commercial vessel in the Pacific Ocean, approaching the mouth of the Columbia River, can continue its eastward journey to finally tie up at the Port of Lewiston, in Lewiston, Idaho, America’s most inland West Coast port, 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean.The Columbia and Snake Rivers form that critical east-west waterway, an economic powerhouse regionally, nationally and internationally. According to the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (PNWA)…

25 Apr 2022

What Goes Around Comes Around - Sale of Ex-Sanko Energy Firming AHTS Values

Those who are old enough (or young enough) to remember Justin Timberlake’s poignant lyrics, ‘What goes around, goes around, goes around, comes all the way back around’, will appreciate their significance and relatability to the offshore oil and gas market. On that theme, it appears a vessel very close to my heart, the AHTS previously known as Sanko Energy (now Ena Shogun), has come 'all the way back around.'News is filtering through the market that Eastern Navigation (Singapore) has sold the vessel five years after purchasing it from Sanko Steamship in early 2017.So why does this vessel resonate with me? Well, from a professional perspective, it was my first analyst experience of a sale that went against everything established market experts thought about values and sale prices.

22 Apr 2022

Tidewater Completes Swire Pacific Offshore Acquisition

(Photo: Swire Pacific Offshore Holdings)

U.S.-headquartered offshore support vessels (OSV) owner Tidewater Inc. on Friday announced it has completed its acquisition of Singapore's Swire Pacific Offshore Holdings Limited (SPO), creating the industry’s largest OSV fleet.The $190 million transaction adds 50 vessels to the Tidewater fleet, which now stands at more than 200 vessels in total, including crew boats, tug boats and maintenance vessels.SPO, now formerly a subsidiary of Swire Pacific Limited, will operate under the Tidewater brand name.

18 Mar 2022

Consolidation is King – Tidewater and Swire Pacific Offshore

©evannovostro/AdobeStock

Tongues are wagging in the offshore sector, as one of the longest-running rumors in the market has finally come true. U.S. offshore vessel owner Tidewater Marine has acquired Singapore's Swire Pacific Offshore for USD 190 million, the company’s biggest powerplay since its acquisition of GulfMark Offshore back in 2018.But why SPO, and why now? In this article, VesselsValue's Head of Offshore, Rob Day, seeks to answer these questions and provide commentary on why this long-time…