Keel-laying ceremony held for Asia’s largest cable-lay vessel

Designed by Norway’s Salt Ship Design, the new cable-lay vessel for the Korean company will be capable of installing high voltage AC and DC power cables as well as fibre optic cables.

The vessel will be 148.4 m in length with a breadth of 31 m and will have a carousel capacity of 13,000 tonnes.

On delivery, the new vessel will reinforce LS Marine Solution’s submarine cable installation capability in the Asia Pacific region.

Salt Ship Design says the design of the vessel “was developed with a strong focus on sustainability and energy efficiency, incorporating the latest technologies to minimize its environmental footprint during operations.

“Key features include a hybrid propulsion system with battery integration for peak shaving and spinning reserve backup during dynamic positioning operations. The ship’s equipment is fully electric and designed to regenerate power back to the vessel during cable laying activities, enhancing overall energy efficiency.”

To reduce onboard energy consumption, a HVAC system with heat recovery has been selected for the accommodation areas. The diesel-electric propulsion system features six generator sets, allowing the vessel’s automatic power management system to continuously select the most fuel-efficient engine combination, further cutting emissions.

Capable of simultaneously laying high-voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine cables and fibre optic cables, it will be one of only a few vessels globally with this advanced capability. The vessel will also be the largest in Asia and will be equipped to lay both HVDC underwater cables and optical cables simultaneously.