North Star Shipping, a division of the family-owned global shipping and energy services firm The Craig Group, has been awarded a major new contract with Talisman Energy (UK) Ltd. Under the contract the company, which provides offshore support vessels to the industry, will build two new platform supply vessels to support Talisman Energy’s North Sea Operations.
The contract, which is for five years with multiple options thereafter, will create 50 new jobs and represents a further $79m investment by The Craig Group in its fleet.
The two IMT-982 designed vessels, still to be named, will be 83 m long with an 18 m beam and have diesel electric propulsion systems offering a greater fuel economy and efficiency. They have been specifically designed to meet the requirements of Talisman Energy in the North Sea.
They will be built at the Balenciaga Shipyard in Northern Spain and are due for delivery in the second and fourth quarter of 2013. They will bring the Craig Group fleet to 37 and reinforce its position as the biggest wholly UK owned offshore support fleet.
Callum Bruce, managing director of North Star, said: “The award of this contract secures our position at the forefront in the provision of vessels in the North Sea. Our major investment in state-of-the-art vessels supports the UK offshore industry and its employees as well as showing our continuing support to British shipping.”
Douglas Craig, chairman and managing director of the Craig Group, said: “Through continuous investment in our people, infrastructure and vessels, we are demonstrating our commitment to meeting the needs of clients with a service that is driven by safety and quality.
“The new vessels meet Talisman’s expectations in terms of safety, operability and efficiency and we continue to look for ways to provide the most innovative, cost effective solutions for all our customers.”
The Craig Group fleet, operated by North Star, now stands at 31 vessels in service with a further six vessels under construction.
Archive for the ‘Work Boats News’ Category
Craig Group Invests $79m in New Vessels
Tuesday, February 7th, 2012Alnmaritec Delivers Logistics Supply Vessel
Tuesday, February 7th, 2012Logistics Supply Vessel ‘Montarik’ was delivered at the end of 2011 to the ship service company Gibunco for operations in Gibraltar harbour. At 18m x 6m she is the largest of the fleet; she carries a substantial payload and is capable of over 20 knots!
The Wave Provider is an aluminium alloy asymmetric catamaran which has fine forward sections developing into a medium deadrise single chine hull form aft. A fast, robust, all-weather craft designed to carry passengers at high speed and in comfort. She is fitted with twin Scania DI16 engines coupled to twin Ultra Dynamics UJ410 waterjets, which give her exceptional manoeuvrability for operating in and around confined spaces.
‘Montarik’ has a large two level wheelhouse/saloon with seating for 12 technicians. She is a larger version of the successful ‘Wave Provider’ class and is a real brute of a genuine workhorse designed to ferry cargo and personnel in and around harbours to ships at anchor and to support diving and underwater hull cleaning operations.
This high specification vessel has a huge working deck area serviced by a 9 tonne boom crane with a dive ladder and access gates. She joins a fleet of four other Alnmaritec vessels in Gibraltar and Algeciras where this model has proved popular with the port and harbour operators.
Montarik Specifications
Boat Builder: Alnmaritec Ltd, U.K.
In service with: Gibunco Ltd, Gibraltar
Type: Logistics Supply Boat
Hull: Asymmetric catamaran
Construction: Aluminium
Length, o.a.: 18 m (59′)
Beam: 6 (19.7′)
Draft: 0.70 m (2.3′)
Displacement light: 25 ton (55,100 lb.)
Speed max: Over 20 knots
Engines: Twin Scania DI16 535 kW /728 mhp@ 2100 rpm
Propulsion: Twin UltraJet 410
Reverse & Steering Controls: UltraJet Hydromechanical
Gearboxes: Twin Disc MG5135SC
Crew and Passengers: 14
Ocean Rig: Three Year Drilling Contract
Tuesday, February 7th, 2012SCI Orders 6 AHTSVs with ABG Shipyard
Shipping Corporation of India Ltd (SCI) has signed ashipbuilding contract for acquisition of six 80 Ton Bollard Pull Anchor Handling, Towing and Supply Vessels (AHTSVs), with M/s.
Ship Pollution Control: MOL Demos Diesel Particulate Filter
Monday, February 6th, 2012NAM Marine Names Regional Energy Manager
Organizational announcement - NAM Marine – Regional Energy Solutions Manager.
Energy efficiency is recognized as a global mandate by governments, maritime organizations & business,
First Ever Dual Drydocking of Aegis Destroyers
Monday, February 6th, 2012First Ever Dual Drydocking of Aegis Destroyers
BAE Systems Ship Repair in Norfolk, VA., has performed the first ever tandem [or dual] drydocking of two U.S. Navy Aegis Guided Missile Destroyers. Both of the massive ships now rest back to back,
Royston Earns Solstad Approval
Monday, February 6th, 2012Three weeks of intensive work late last year by engineers from Royston Limited has won praise from the operators of the Normand Installer after it was found to need an urgent engine overhaul before resuming work off West Africa.
The 14,506 gt offshore construction support vessel is notable for having a 350 tonne capacity A-frame, 250 and 50 tonne heavy lift cranes, carousel cable/pipe laying system, 500 tonne anchor handling/towing winch system and DP3 dynamic positioning system. These features are considered to make the Normand Installer a valuable asset for any offshore construction project and reinforced the importance of its being available for work off West Africa. The ship was in Hartlepool to load cables that it was scheduled to lay on the Asgard Field offshore Angola. However, water leaks from the exhaust seat of a cylinder head on one of the ship’s four engines led ship’s staff and engineers to immediately identify a need to inspect and pressure-test other cylinders heads.
Working in cooperation with a service engineer, it was later concluded that their condition meant that each of the 48 cylinder heads on all of the ship’s engines needed to be overhauled before resuming work off Angola. This was seen as essential if the risk of costly problems and contractual delays were to be avoided when operating offshore.
An engineering team was quickly assembled by Royston who, working in cooperation with the on-board service engineer, devised a work plan that would enable as many cylinder heads as possible to be removed and serviced while the ship was docked in Hartlepool. With 24-hour working initiated at Royston’s workshop in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the company serviced and overhauled all of the cylinder heads for two of the ship’s main engines. The result was that 12-days after the problem had been identified, a total of 32 cylinder heads had been removed, cleaned, machined and re-installed so that the engines were returned to full operational condition.
With the Normand Installer committed to a tight work schedule off Angola, two Royston engineers sailed along with the service engineer to Las Palmas where they were able to resume the overhaul of the cylinder heads on the remaining engines. This was achieved in a workshop created on-board with the use of equipment supplied by Royston. It was thereby possible to machine the cylinder head valves and valve seats and to use a cylinder head cleaning tank and pressure testing equipment while at sea.
After a four day voyage the ship arrived in Las Palmas where the team on board was joined by three more Royston engineers who enabled the introduction of a 24-hour shift pattern. This was maintained throughout the remainder of the voyage and ensured that every cylinder head on the ship’s four engines had been removed, serviced and replaced before it anchored off Abijan, Cote d’Ivoire.
Peter Murphy, technical superintendent for the Normand Installer, subsequently praised the support he had received from Royston and issued a formal recommendation to his fellow Solstad superintendents for the company’s employment on other vessels in the Solstad fleet.
Severe Weather Disrupts Black Sea Shipping
Saturday, February 4th, 2012Paperless Navigation & Comms Solution Launched
Consilium and Orange launch Current At Sea, a paperless maritime navigation and communication solution.
Current At Sea improves safety, allows efficient communications,
STX to Design Canadian Icebreaker
Friday, February 3rd, 2012STX Canada Marine Awarded Contract to Design the Canadian Coast Guard’s New Polar Icebreaker.
STX Canada Marine is pleased to announce that they have been awarded the contract to design the new polar icebreaker for the Canadian Coast Guard. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans announced today the award on behalf of the Government of Canada. The work will be carried out at STX Canada Marine’s Vancouver office and be completed by the end of 2013.
The polar icebreaker will be named after former Prime Minister John George Diefenbaker (CCGS John G. Diefenbaker). It will be able to operate autonomously for 270 days in the Arctic, over a larger area, and in more difficult conditions than any of Canada’s current icebreakers. The new Icebreaker will be delivered to coincide with the decommissioning of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent in 2017. The new vessel will replace the CCGS Louis St. Laurent as the CCG Flagship. The polar icebreaker will be designed to accommodate 100 personnel and have the ability to break through 2.5m of ice.
STX Canada Marine is a naval architecture and engineering services company with offices in Vancouver and Ottawa. For almost 30 years they have been providing ship design and engineering services nationally and internationally. In recent years, they have had the privilege of working with the Department of National Defense on the design of the Arctic Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPS) and the Canadian Coast Guard on the design of the Offshore Oceanographic Science Vessel (OOSV). STX Marine Canada looks forward to working collaboratively with the CCG in designing the polar icebreaker.
STX Canada Marine will be supported in the Polar Icebreaker Design project by a team of highly experienced partners including Aker Arctic Technology (AARC), SNC-Lavalin, INDAL Technologies and Noise Control Engineering. Aker Arctic Technology, part of STX Europe will provide their world leading icebreaker design and construction expertise to the project. AARC and STX shipyards have been involved in the design and construction of over 60% of the world’s icebreakers
The polar icebreaker is one of the vessels included in the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS) Non-Combat contract awarded to Seaspan Vancouver Shipyards Ltd in October. Therefore, the vessel will be designed and built in Vancouver. The project will provide a significant economic boost to Canadian marine industry and west coast shipyard workers and marine related companies in particular.
Containership Rescues 116 Shipwreck Survivors
Friday, February 3rd, 2012Costa Calls on Salvage Companies for Ship Removal Plans
Costa Crociere has set up a technical committee, with representatives from Costa Cruises, Carnival Corporation & plc, Fincantieri, Rina and sector experts, including academics,
Atlas Copco Adds to Sales Team
Friday, February 3rd, 2012Roush appointed sales specialist for Atlas Copco Construction Equipment.
Jamie Roush has been promoted to the position of parts and service sales specialist at Atlas Copco Construction Equipment effective Jan. 1. In his new role Roush will report directly to Atlas Copco Aftermarket Vice President Matt Cadnum.
Roush was most recently an e-commerce program manager, a position in which he worked closely with Atlas Copco operations and customer centers around the globe. He has also worked as a territory manager for a power distribution company and has worked in customer service and technical service engineering.
Roush was heavily involved in the mergers of Atlas Copco Hurricane and portable compressors into the Construction Equipment business line. He said he looks forward to increasing the parts and service market segment for Atlas Copco in the United States by broadening the product portfolios directed at high pressure compressor customers.
“Jamie has extensive experience in customer and technical service with construction equipment products,” states Cadnum. “Since joining Atlas Copco in 2007, Jamie has held the positions of customer service manager and e-commerce program developer. In these roles he has gained vast experience with our customers and internal systems, which will be extremely helpful to succeed with this new mission.”