Brazilian operator Starnav Serviços Marítimos' new platform supply vessel (PSV) Starnav Elektra has been delivered ahead of entering a long-term charter with state-owned energy company Petrobras.
The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), which also classed the vessel, described her as the first hybrid PSV designed and constructed in Brazil.
The 5,500DWT vessel was built by Detroit Brasil at its shipyard in Itajaí, Santa Catarina. She will support offshore logistics in Brazilian waters.
ABS said her 1,322kWh lithium iron phosphate battery system was sized to meet the operator's DP2 requirements, including holding position on battery power for up to 20 minutes following an engine failure.
The battery pack sits on the main deck instead of in the hull, the placement having been intended to make maintenance easier and to reduce risk.
The arrangement will allow the PSV to use fewer generators while cutting fuel consumption and emissions and reducing the need for engine maintenance.
Starnav CEO Carlos Eduardo Pereira said the vessel is also ready to run on renewable fuels such as HVO.
Starnav Elektra is the first of a planned series of up to 10 hybrid vessels comprising six PSVs and four oil spill response vessels.
The PSV was named in Rio de Janeiro on September 17.
Petrobras awarded contracts for 12 PSVs in December 2024, with Starnav and Bram Offshore assigned six each.
The contracts cover 12 years of operation and set a 40 per cent local content threshold for the construction phase.
The PSV has a length of 92.1 metres, a beam of 20 metres, four 1,825kW generators, two 2,500kW propellers, three 1,200kW bow thrusters, 1,000 square metres of deck area, accommodation for 42 personnel, and a service speed of 12 knots.
