Many OSV owners are looking at options for utilising their tonnage in other sectors
For example, at the end of 2016 Farstad Shipping won a contract with Ocean Farming for the complete mooring installation and hook-up of Ocean Farming’s semi-submersible offshore fish farm. This project will use Farstad AHTSs. Farstad’s Mr Bakken said: “The introduction of offshore fish farms of this size and specification is opening a new market for utilisation of large AHTS vessels. We are excited to be taking part in making this first pilot a success and look forward to further developments in this market.”
Solstad Offshore is another OSV company to have diversified into the windfarm support sector. It secured contracts with offshore windfarm operator Dong Energy which will employ two of Solstad’s construction support vessels including Rem Installer, which is being renamed Normand Jarl, following Solstad’s merger with Rem Offshore. It started work on the contract in February 2017 and will be joined by the second vessel in April 2018.
Meanwhile Solstad construction support vessel Normand Reach will operate a contract for services in the Ichthys gas field development project offshore Western Australia. Solstad commented: “This deal is an exciting opportunity for Solstad Offshore to introduce its high specification subsea construction vessels into the Australian and Asia Pacific markets.”
In March 2017 Subsea 7 completed the acquisition from K&S Baltic Offshore (Cyprus) of its 50 per cent shareholding in Seaway Heavy Lifting. Jean Cahuzac, chief executive of Subsea 7, said: “Our investment to acquire the remaining shares in Seaway Heavy Lifting, so that it becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of our group, is aligned with our strategy to grow and strengthen our business in the long term. Consolidating Seaway Heavy Lifting into the group increases our participation in renewables, heavy lifting and decommissioning services. These are areas where we expect market activity to increase and see potential to grow our market share.”
Seaway Heavy Lifting is working on Subsea 7’s Beatrice offshore windfarm contract in Scotland, the company’s first venture in the renewables sector. It owns 183m long Stanislav Yudin and Oleg Strashnov. Stanislav Yudin has eight-point mooring, a 2,500 tonne crane and accommodation for 151 personnel. DP3 Oleg Strashnov has a 5,000 tonne crane and accommodation for 220 people.
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