Vroon Offshore Services B.V

2019, GustoMSC signed a license agreement with Saudi company International Maritime Industries (IMI). As part of this contract, GustoMSC will be responsible for delivering the basic design of its CJ-series jack-up drilling rigs. GustoMSC has also been highly successful in designing jack-up wind turbine construction vessels that can also be deployed in the offshore oil and gas industry. One example is the CP 8001 for Penta-Ocean Construction Co, a jack-up of the type GustoMSC CJ-3750. This, the first and largest construction jack-up ever built in Japan, was completed in early 2019 by the Japan Marine United yard. It was announced at the end of last year that GustoMSC is due to supply the basic design for a wind farm installation vessel capable of installing foundations and turbines, with a capacity of 10-12 MW. This vessel is intended for the Japanese trio Penta-Ocean-Construction, Kajima Corporation and Yorigami Maritime Construction and will be built by PaxOcean Engineering in Singapore. GustoMSC also delivered the very first Chela crane to Maersk Drilling. The crane was installed below the cantilever on the jack-up drilling rig Maersk Invincible.

At the start of last year, OSD-IMT presented the design for a compact anchor-handling towing vessel. This vessel type, the OSD-IMT 7501, is based on the now renowned Tempest design. This new type of anchor-handling tug will deliver a bollard pull of 120 tonnes. Later in the year, OSD-IMT announced the signing of a contract for the design of at least three OSD-IMT 7402 shallow draft tugs for PT Patria Maritim Perkasa in Batam, Indonesia. Ulstein Design and Solutions then presented a new type of wind turbine installation vessel, known as the Ulstein J 102. This vessel will be 145 metres long and 88 metres wide.

The OSD-IMT design for a compact anchor-handling towing vessel. (Illustration: OSD-IMT)

Others

One Dutch company that has established a global reputation with W2W solutions is Ampelmann. In March 2019, the company reported a double milestone, namely the safe transfer worldwide of 5 million people, and of 10 million kilograms of cargo. The first milestone was achieved with an Ampelmann system on the Posh Skimmer, deployed on a project in Qatar, while the second was achieved on the Deep Sygnus, in the North Sea. March also saw the signing of the very first contract for the deployment of an A-type W2W system in the Gulf of Mexico, installed on the MPSV Ocean Star. In just 110 days, this walk-to-work solution was responsible for the safe transfer of 9,000 people. A contract for a second W2W system in the Gulf of Mexico followed shortly thereafter. This A-type model was installed on board the Harvey Blue Sea.

In the Norwegian sector of the North Sea, Ampelmann made its debut with an E-type W2W system. This motioncompensated gangway system was installed on board the Normand Jarstein, to support the hook-up and commissioning of the Aker BP Valhall Flank West platform. In August, Ampelmann completed its first cargo project in the North Sea. This project made use of the innovative and proven E-1000 system on the Olympic Delta vessel, enabling both people and cargo transfers to two singlepoint mooring platforms. A short time later, a second E-type system was installed on the Horizon Enabler, for a project off the coast of Nigeria. Ampelmann has recently revealed a new access system that is said to be capable of transferring personnel and cargo weighing up to 5 tonnes. This E-5000 system is expected to be operational in the third quarter of 2020.

For the drilling sector, Huisman has developed an automatic tripping system. This system improves the efficiency and safety of the drilling process. Together with Noble Corporation, Huisman successfully concluded the final tests of the newly designed automatic tripping system on board the Noble Globetrotter II drillship. At the end of last year, Huisman announced the signing of a contract for the design, engineering, construction and delivery of a 5,000-tonne tub mounted crane on board Jan de Nul’s latest offshore installation vessel. This vessel is currently under construction in China, and is due to be handed over in 2021. Kenz Figee delivered a fully tailored offshore crane to Besix for installation on board the jack-up platform Rima. This crane has a lifting capacity of 240 tonnes. n