Antwerp-based Scaldis Salvage & Marine Contractors NV has ordered a powerful, self-propelled DP2 crane ship from Korean shipbuilders STX Offshore & Shipbuilding. The ship can be used for the installation of offshore infrastructure and decommissioning activities in deep water for the oil and gas industry and the installation of offshore wind farms as well as any type of heavy lifting work in challenging situations, such as the construction of bridge components and clearing shipwrecks.
The contract with STX Offshore & Shipbuilding for the construction and delivery of the ship was signed on 29 February 2012. Scaldis drew up the design in-house. The vessel will be built at STX’s shipyard in Dalian and finished in Xiamen, both of which are located in the People’s Republic of China. The keel will be laid in February 2013. Delivery is scheduled for spring 2014.
Design Characteristics
– It has two Huisman cranes each with a lifting capacity of 2000 tonnes, based on a design by Vuyk Engineering Rotterdam.
– The ship has extra carrying capacity of 3000 tonnes.
– The cranes can be moved by 25 m on the ship. This allows the deck to be used to transport and then relocate cargo at a later stage.
– The ship and the cranes are an integrated design which allows the maximum load to be hoisted in significant wave heights of up to 1.5 m. In these circumstances, the freeboard is not less than 3 m anywhere on the vessel.
– In standby or transport modes, significant wave height can be as much as 7.0 m.
– The maximum load can be lifted in water depths of just 5.0 m.
– The four azimuth thrusters and the DP2 system allow installation work to be conducted in deeper water without the use of anchors.
– The crane ship is equipped with four main working anchors and winches and four secondary devices.
– The powerful and rapid ballast system can follow the hoisting operation exactly.
– The ship will be equipped with a so-called ‘moonpool’ for the purposes of operating a separate ROV
(Remotely Operated Vehicle) for inspecting and supervising installation work on the seabed.
– The presence of heavy fenders allows containers to be loaded/unloaded at sea.
Ship Particulars
– Provisional name Rambiz II
– Type Self-propelled crane ship
– Principal SCALDIS Salvage & Marine Contractors N.V.
– Shipyard STX Offshore & Shipbuilding (S. Korea)
– Length 108.00 m
– Beam 50.90 m
– Depth 8.00 m
– Draught 4.90 m
– Speed 7 knots
– Hoisting capacity 4,000 Tonnes
– Total installed capacity 10,450 kW
– Accommodation 78 people
– Special feature DP2
– Helipad
