Chinese yard to build PSVs for Dutch owner

Dutch shipowner Vroon has contracted Ulstein to provide the design and power package for two platform supply vessels (PSV) of the PX121 design.

The ships, which will be constructed at China’s COSCO (Guangdong) Shipyard Co., Ltd., are planned for delivery in the first quarter of 2015. The vessels for Vroon are the ninth and tenth of this design whilst an option exists for two more vessels.

Ulstein says that the PX121 design has been very well received worldwide. Inge Gjelsten, Captain of the ‘Blue Fighter’ PSV, a fellow PX 121 design vessel, has given a positive appraisal of the vessel’s performance.

X-BOW effect

“All on board agree that this is a remarkably efficient and comfortable vessel in all weather conditions. Wind and seas have little impact on the vessel’s performance compared to conventional PSVs.

“We can compare performance directly when steaming on the same tracks to the oil fields: with the same weather conditions and 3-5 metres head sea within 30 degrees of the bow, our ship can easily and comfortably maintain a speed of 12-13 knots, while the other vessels have to reduce their speed to 7-8 knots. The higher speed is a result of the ‘X-BOW effect’.

“Also, due to the position of the stabilisation tanks on board, ‘Blue Fighter’ operates extremely well when wind and seas approach from the side.”

Several Chinese shipbuilders have secured orders recently to build PSVs based on Ulstein’s design series, whilst Sinopacific’s Zhejiang yard delivered the first in a series of 12 PX105 designed vessels to its owner last month.