DOF Brasil making waves

DOF Brasil, which uses the Norskan Offshore and DOF Subsea brands for offshore support vessel (OSV) operations in Brazil, has been in the headlines in recent months as it makes good use of its mostly Brazilian flag fleet to maintain its position as the leading Norwegian OSV company and third position in Brazil overall.

It hit the news when it was officially ranked by Petrobras as the leading operator in terms of its ranking system which evaluates company performances in terms of quality and safety. That was followed by the announcement that Norskan was selling off five of its older vessels so that they can be used by a new OSV operator Marlin Navegação.

DOF Offshore has been looking to shed some of the older vessels from its fleet for some time, and so its management teams in Brazil and Norway are delighted with the sale of the five vessels to two private equity funds, managed by Mantiqu Investimentos and Mare Investimentos, which are based in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro respectively, and are in the process of setting up Marlin.

By parting company with the four platform supply vessels (PSVs) and one anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessel Norskan, can pay off its remaining mortgage on the vessels and release an extra NKr 500 million of liquidity for the company.

The oldest of the vessels was the UT 755 Skandi Stolmen, which was built in 1997, and the others were Skandi Leblon (2004), Skandi Flamengo (2003) and Skandi Yare (2001). The AHTS 12000, Skandi Copacabana, is 10 years old.

One Rio de Janeiro based shipping consultant who works closely with Norskan said: “This is a sound business strategy. Norskan, which has been talking to agents for the two private equity funds for more than a year, are gradually dispensing with their older, smaller ships and replacing them with newer, bigger ones.

“They have the two new AHTSs coming on stream shortly and they have kept their Petrobras contracts for another year or so. On top of that Norskan also has plans to build subsea construction vessels, using the money generated by the sales of the older vessels. This strategy looks spot on to me.”

The new vessels that will shortly come on stream are sisterships to the Skandi Urca, an AHTS 18000 that was delivered from the Vard Niterói a few months ago.

Its sister ship the Skandi Angra, was due to be delivered just as Norwegian Solutions went to press in early May, and the third of the three, Skandi Paraty, will be delivered before the end of this year.

All three are 93.5m long, have a wide, 22m beam, with a 4,600 dwt capacity and a bollard pull of 250 tonnes. They are classed by DNV GL.

The shipping consultant suggested that DOF Brasil will now be able to move ahead with its plan to build two new vessels. They are currently being called EP-9 and EP-10 and are being billed by DOF as environmentally friendly vessels, designed for subsea construction and pipe laying, inspection maintenance and repair and remotely operated vehicle services up to 3,000m in depth, with plans for delivery in 2016 and 2017.

Every year Petrobras evaluates its suppliers from the maritime and aeronautical sections, in order to keep up a high standard of quality and safety. DOF Brasil was rated the best out of 51 offshore maritime companies that supply Petrobras operations.

The programme is significant for several reasons. First, it offers a competitive advantage to those who accomplish good results allowing companies to charge an extra 2 per cent when bidding for charter contracts. It is also a strategic tool, as it bolsters the relationship between the OSV sector and Petrobras.

Moisés Haddad, DOF health, safety, environment and quality vice president in the Brazilian region, said: “To be at the top of the rank is an opportunity to strengthen our brand in the Brazilian offshore market and a showcase window for future employees, partners and investors. It is a big responsibility to be number one. It is a reference of excellence, but we cannot take this position for granted. We must always focus on the global, international market, in search of new methods, new ways of working, and new ideas and so on.”

These evaluations are conducted through audits, executed by classified companies. In the offshore section, one vessel out of a group of approximately 10 is selected to be checklisted by more than 400 questions, divided into 13 groups including: leadership and responsibility, legal conformity, risk assessment, operations, maintenance, change management, assets and services acquisition, training awareness and competence, information management, communications, incidents and accidents assessment, and continuous improvement process. NS