David Paganie • Houston
Keppel FELS delivers semisub tender
Keppel FELS has deliveredWest Vencedor, the sixth of seven KFELS semisubmersible drilling tenders (SSDT), to Seadrill. The completion wraps up a record year of 13 rig deliveries in 2009 by Keppel FELS on time and within budget, the fabricator claims.
West Vencedor is expected to begin development drilling in the first quarter of this year offshore Angola under a five-year contract with Cabinda Gulf Oil.
Construction of the seventh SSDT and two jackups at Keppel FELS remains on schedule with expected deliveries extending from the second quarter of this year into 2Q 2011. When completed, Keppel-built rigs will make up 35% of Seadrill’s premium fleet.
Meanwhile, Keppel picked up a contract from Noble Corp. to upgrade and repair a third Brazil-based drillship. The $152-million contact calls for the fabrication, repair, and replacement of components, including the stern section, accommodation blocks, sponsons, and heliport. The company will work on the three drillships sequentially. The first drillship will arrive at BrasFELS in early 2011. Operations are scheduled for completion during the second half of 2013.
Lamprell completes drilling barge
UAE fabricator Lamprell has delivered its first newbuild tender-assist drilling barge, theBassDrill Alpha. In November, the company announced it had agreed to a reduced delivery payment from the client, BassDrill Alpha Ltd. (BassDrill), ending continuing uncertainty over the project’s final outcome.
Lamprell has since received the $60 million negotiated settlement. This comprises $55 million in cash and 28 million shares in BassDrill – 20% of the latter’s equity. Under the transaction, Lamprell has the option to sell these shares after 12 months.
Hornbeck adds MSV to fleet
Hornbeck Offshore Services has added to its fleet theHOS Centerline, a Jones Act qualified, 370-ft (113-m) multi-purpose support vessel.
The HOS 370 designed vessel has an 8,000-plus dwt capacity. It is the only vessel with US Coast Guard certifications that allow it to operate as a supply vessel, industrial/construction vessel, and as a petroleum and chemical tanker, according to HOS. It has a 240-ft x 58-ft (73-m x 18-m) cargo deck and an additional 30 ft x 58 ft (9 m x 18 m) of covered deck space.
The vessel can transport more than 30,000 bbl of liquid drilling mud and fuel. Positive displacement pumping systems allow the vessel to provide a consistent transfer of product even at installations with large air gaps, HOS says.
HOS Centerline features a self-contained mixing and cleaning system. The vessel is equipped to carry crude oil as well as other flammable and combustible cargoes. It has 18 tanks with three separate segregations that allow the transport of three separate products at the same time.
Drydocks World delivers seismic vessel
Drydocks World has delivered the newbuild 3D seismic vesselPolarcus Nadia, the first of a series of four to be built at the yard. All will be owned and operated by Polarcus, the Dubai-based, marine geophysical contractor specializing in towed streamer marine data acquisition.
The double-hulled, 88.3-m (289-ft) long vessel is equipped to tow up to 12 steamers. The vessel is of Ulstein SX 124 design and is said to incorporate numerous innovative features. It has a diesel-electric propulsion system and high-specification catalytic converters. Safety features including a DP-2 dynamic positioning system and bilge water cleaning that conforms to international norms.
Drydocks World has undergone a comprehensive facility and service expansion program to allow it to take on complex projects in newbuilding, repair, and conversion.
Oceaneering to build new DSV
Oceaneering International Inc. has contracted a US Gulf Coast shipyard to construct a new dive support vessel (DSV). The company expects delivery of the 200-ft x 46-ft (61-m x 14-m) vessel in the fourth quarter of this year. The new DSV will replace theOcean Project, which was built in 1972.
The vessel will be US-flagged and outfitted to perform subsea inspection, repair, and maintenance (IRM) services and to support construction operations in the Gulf of Mexico. Oceaneering believes that there are over 3,500 platforms and approximately 20,000 mi (32,187 km) of pipelines in use in the GoM that will need servicing for the future.
The vessel will have built-in diving equipment, including a dive control system and decompression chambers. It will have accommodations for 50 personnel and equipped with a 40-ton (36-metric ton) crane, a working moon pool, and a four-point mooring system enabling operations in 700 ft (213 m) of water.
In other GoM vessel news, Ensco International expects the recently delivered semisubmersible drilling rigEnsco 8502 to begin its two-year commitment with Nexen in the second quarter of this year.
The semisub has a 35,000-ft (10,668-m) nominal rated drilling depth, 2 million pounds of hoisting capacity, 8,000 tons (7,257 metric tons) of variable deck load, and it can be upgraded to drill and complete wells in up to 10,000 ft (3,048 m) of water.
