Petrobras has awarded three contracts to Subsea 7 with a combined value of approximately US $ 1.6 billion for the construction and operation of three new-build flexible pipe-lay support vessels (PLSVs).
The work scope of each of these five year contracts is similar to that of the PLSVs which Subsea 7 currently operates offshore Brazil, comprising project management, engineering and installation of flowlines, umbilicals and equipment supplied by Petrobras.
PLSVs to Be Constructed at IHC Merwede
The three new PLSVs are of similar design to the Seven Waves, and will be constructed in Holland at the IHC Merwede shipyard. The vessels are scheduled to be delivered in Q3 2016, Q4 2016 and Q2 2017 respectively.
They are designed for operation in water depths of up to 3000 metres, and will be equipped with a pipe-lay system for installing flexible flowlines and umbilicals, including a lay system tower with 550 tonnes top tension capability, twin underdeck baskets capable of storing up to 4000 tonnes of flexible flowlines and two ROVs. The total cost of the three vessels, including inventories, commissioning and mobilisation to Brazil, is approximately US $ 950 million.
Picture: Launch of the Seven Waves (by SWZM/G.J. de Boer)
