South Stream Transport has awarded Swiss-based Allseas Group a contract to lay the first line of the TurkStream offshore gas pipeline in the Black Sea, with an option for laying the second line.

According to the contract, Allseas is to lay more than 900 km of pipes on the seabed. The company will start laying the first line in the second half of 2017.

Pioneering Spirit

Allseas will engage the world's largest construction vessel, the dynamically positioned Pioneering Spirit, for the job. The Pioneering Spirit is equipped with pipelay equipment that makes it possible to install record-weight pipelines from shallow to ultra-deep water, and has an S-lay tension capacity of 2000 tonnes. The vessel, currently in the Alexiahaven in Rotterdam, is equipped with a double-joint factory, six welding stations for double joints and six coating stations.