Since 2008 the United Arab Emirates based owner and operator has worked with most of the oil and gas companies operating in Qatar, providing vessels to cover their spot and short-term charter requirements.
The latest contract award for Allianz will see it mobilise a newbuild safety and standby vessel into Qatar to operate on behalf of Qatar Petroleum Development (QPD) under a five-year charter.
Artemis Star will operate for QPD after it is delivered in March 2011 and will be based at the Grandweld shipyard in the UAE, said Allianz’s general manager Mr Muralikrishna. The 36m long vessel has a breadth of 9m and is classed by Bureau Veritas.
QPD is operating offshore gas production platforms as part of the first phase of development of the vast North gas field. It also operates oil processing platforms on the Maydan Mahzam and Bul Hanine fields.
The St Vincent-flagged Artemis Star will have accommodation for seven crew and 15 offshore personnel. The rescue vessel can accommodate six people. The vessel will have two 1,450 bhp CAT C32 Acert engines and two twin-screw propellers which will provide a speed of 13 knots. The vessel also has a thruster at the bow for positioning.
Artemis Star’s bridge equipment will be supplied by Far East suppliers. Japan-based Koden Electronics is supplying the radar and GPS for Artemis Star and South Korea’s Samyang is supplying the AIS, navigation aids, VHF radio for GMDSS, Sart transponders and emergency beacons. Thrane & Thrane have supplied a Sailor RT 2048 VHF radio for general communications.
QPD is just one of at least eight clients Allianz has worked for in the past two years. Others include the French oil major Total, one of Qatar’s largest producers Maersk Oil, gas supplier Dolphin Energy and German oil company Wintershall. Allianz’s client list also includes service companies Halliburton, Schlumberger and Five Oceans Services.
In 2010 Five Oceans Services installed three lengths of fibre optic cables with a total length of 136km for the Pearl GTL project for J Ray McDermott and Qatar Shell. It used the modified PSV Siem Carrier, a VS483 design, built in 1996, operating under a five-year charter from Norway’s Siem Offshore.
“We have worked with these clients for their various spot and term requirements since 2008,” says Mr Muralikrishna. “The vessels were mostly OSVs providing logistics support to drilling operations, safety standby vessels for offshore platforms and support vessels for seismic survey operations.”
Mr Muralikrishna said he expects more charters and contracts in 2011 as demand for offshore services is improving in Qatar, as elsewhere in the region. “We have recently participated in various tenders in Qatar and Iran and expect to get awarded contracts for two or three vessels each in Iran and Qatar,” Mr Muralikrishna added.
One major area of activity for Allianz is India, where it works for local engineering and services group Larsen & Toubro. “We are providing logistics support for our client for the transportation and installation of jackets and towage of barges with project cargo. The duration of the charters varied from three months to half a year for these vessels, and all of them are presently working off the west coast of India,” Mr Muralikrishna explained.
Allianz mobilised at least four ships from Singapore and Dubai to cover Larsen & Toubro’s requirements in India. It chartered the 2007-built, 12,000 bhp anchor handler Salvigilant from Semco and 2009-built anchor handler Bourbon Liberty 103. It also moved the Panama-flagged tug Jawar Dubai and 2008-built, 5,140 bhp anchor handler WOS 5504 to the west coast of India.
Allianz’ relationship with Larsen & Toubro extended into Qatar when it assisted the Indian contractor in the transport and installaltion of offshore platforms for Maersk Oil’s Al Shaheen project in 2009 and 2010.
Grandweld to open new shipbuilding base in 2011
Grandweld will be moving its operations to a new shipbuilding and shiprepair facility in the United Arab Emirates in order to double its construction capacity and attract larger vessel orders. Grandweld has signed an agreement with Drydocks World Dubai over the 25-year ground lease for the shipbuilding site in the Industrial Precinct of Dubai Maritime City (DMC).
“The new facility in DMC is an additional milestone for Grandweld and will allow us to double our shipbuilding capacity. Moreover it offers us extra capacity for docking larger vessels at the ship repair facility that has full and free access to the Arabian Gulf,” Grandweld general manager Jamal Abki said.
The company, a division of Gulf Marine Maintenance and Offshore Services group, is currently building ships at the Dubai Ship Docking Yard in Al Jadaf but will move into the new 27,000m2 site in the fourth quarter of 2011. Grandweld is currently building a VS 550 design diving and maintenance support vessel, classed by Det Norske Veritas, for Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. It is also building five aluminium crew vessels. OSJ
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