As its name suggests, the $US140 million vessel – owned by international outfit DOF Subsea – will be based out of Singapore once construction and commissioning is finished in the third quarter of 2009.
“This will be the most advanced dive support vessel in the region,” Geoff Hogg, Commercial Manager of DOF Subsea’s Asia Pacific unit, said.
The Skandi Singapore is faster than most dive support vessels. The craft will have a maximum speed of 16 knots, compared to the region’s next fastest ship at about 11 knots, while some older vessels can only manage six or seven knots.
This means it can get to its destination more quickly, saving the client time and money.
“Using one of the faster ships in the region, the typical transit time for a dive support vessel to get from Singapore to Dampier would be almost seven days, at a speed of 11 knots,” Hogg said.
“But at 16 knots, the Skandi Singapore can do the same journey in about four days, nearly half the time.”
In addition to its advanced dynamic positioning system, the new-generation ship also has the latest diver support technology in the form of a brand new saturation dive system rated for 300m, complete with heave-compensated bell launch and recovery system.
It will also be the first vessel in the Asia Pacific region fitted with catalytic converters that meet stringent European environmental standards, plus its Ice Class rating makes it ideal for operating in cold climates.
It will also have two in-built Work Class ROV systems capable of diving down to 3000m – some of the region’s deepest rated systems, designed for operators joining the growing push into deep water.
“Our research and that of others, shows the market moving towards deeper water and that commands deeper, more reliable equipment,” Hogg said.
“The aging, older assets just won’t be able to handle the future requirements of this big growth sector of the market.”
While DOF Subsea is yet to sign-up any clients for the Skandi Singapore, he said news of the ship’s arrival had generated “a lot of interest” in a region where a string of major offshore developments are in the pipeline.
“Just look at what Woodside is doing off the coast here [in Australia] – they’re going to be developing projects one after the other for the foreseeable future,” he said.
Even though the vessel’s speciality will be providing support for deepwater projects such as Gorgon and others planned throughout the region, the Skandi Singapore will be equally suitable for shallow water projects with intense diving requirements.
“The ship is primarily aimed at construction projects, deepwater repairs and diver intervention,” Hogg said.
DOF Subsea is working to extend its range of capabilities as there is huge demand for new ships and technology in the global market, according to Hogg.
“The fleet of vessels around the world is getting older, at a time when clients are demanding newer, more efficient ships,” he said.
Norwegian giant StatoilHydro (formerly Statoil) recently locked DOF Subsea’s Skandi Bergen ROV support ship into a five-year contract in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.
“Committing that vessel for five years shows that there is a lot of advantage to engaging technically advanced vessels when you’re operating in an environment where the oil price is approaching $100 a barrel,” Hogg said.
Along with the Bergen and Singapore vessels, DOF Subsea owns a further 22 offshore vessels, 26 ROVS, 1 AUV and 11 diving spreads in its global operations.
It extended its reach into the Asia-Pacific region in 2005, opening operational and administrative offices in Singapore, Australia, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines.
In the two years since establishing itself in the Asia Pacific region, DOF Subsea has provided construction support, remedial and intervention work for companies such as Woodside on the North West Shelf Project and at the Santos-operated Mutineer-Exeter oil project.
Elsewhere in the region, it has installed pipelines in Indonesia for PT Newmont and worked for extensively for Saipem at Sakhalin Island and in the Gulf of Thailand.
