Malin Sentinel, the final offshore support vessel in a £150M (US$188M) investment programme for Aberdeen-based Sentinel Marine, has set sail from China’s Cosco Shipyard in Dalian
Sentinel Marine reports the OSV will transit via Singapore and the Suez Canal, arriving in Aberdeen about 20 August.
The new vessel joins the Sentinel Marine fleet of emergency response and rescue vessels (ERRVs) which operate in the North Sea, performing additional tasks beyond the traditional rescue vessel duties. Earlier this year Sentinel Marine announced contract wins and extensions worth £36M (US$45M).
Malin Sentinel completes the second phase of nine newbuild vessels for Sentinel Marine. Each purpose-built vessel has been built with Tier 4 engines to reduce emissions and greenhouse gases to near zero. The firm has three further vessels to be delivered from phase three of their newbuild programme.
Sentinel Marine chief executive officer Rory Deans said "Malin Sentinel is a landmark vessel for us, completing our second phase of newbuild vessels which introduced new levels of cost, operational and environmental efficiency. Like the other vessels in our fleet, Malin Sentinel will provide far wider reaching service than response and rescue to keep offshore workers safe.” Added Mr Dean, “Our vessels also operate as oil recovery, tanker assist and cargo handling vessels, offering significant cost savings for our clients who would otherwise have to charter additional vessels.”
Sentinel Marine said the multi-role functionality of its new, purpose-built fleet offers “an attractive proposition for operators" to vessels that have been converted.
Sentinel Marine has 300 seafarers operating its fleet currently and this will rise to close to 400 when a further three enhanced spec ERRVs newbuilds currently under commission are completed.
These new additions, which are being built at the same shipyard in China, will have increased dynamic positioning capabilities with a DP2 notation, firefighting class 1, oil recovery and liquid mud and dry bulk capacities.
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