Focus on Offshore Oil and Gas Operations

By Alex Baird - May 2, 2022.

OFFSHORE WEEK

The string of bad luck for the beleaguered OSV market continues as the effects of the coronavirus lingers and the Russian invasion of Ukraine showing no signs of slowing.

Meanwhile, bankruptcies, takeovers and instances of corruption and mismanagement are almost weekly occurrences, as regular readers of Baird Maritime’s Offshore Accounts column would be painfully aware of.

Follow-on effects of the Russian invasion have also laid bare the holes in the renewables dream, with nuclear energy seriously back on the table for the first time in decades. How this will effect its less efficient competition in wind and tidal remains to be seen, but the most heavily subsidised sectors are always vulnerable in a large-scale energy shake-up.

OSVs • Exploration • Extraction • Processing • Construction • Storage • Operations • Renewables

Many of the vessels built before 2015 are large, powerful and versatile, and if maintained well, they are still good and useful ships. This continues to put a significant dampener on the OSV newbuilding market, while the second-hand market remains stagnant.

Despite all the bad news, some innovative and versatile newbuilds continue to be delivered and the refit/conversion market remains strong, as readers will see this week. Exciting times are ahead one way or another for this volatile market.

Vessel Reviews:

News and Gear:

Recent Important Features:

COLUMN | What goes around comes around: Mermaid Maritime grows, Ultra Deep Solutions shrinks, whilst ADES and Tidewater close purchases [Offshore Accounts]

– “There have been genuine achievements by UDS, for example, in early March 2022, the company recovered a downed American fighter jet from water depths of over 3,700 metres in the South China Sea.”

– by Hieronymus Bosch, Baird Maritime‘s anonymous insider in the world of offshore oil and gas operations

COLUMN | Eneti’s wishful thinking; Transocean enters subsea mining; Allseas progresses wet mining tests; Boskalis goes private; SHUAA buys Allianz Marine in Abu Dhabi [Offshore Accounts]

– “With judicious bail outs from shareholders and support from lenders, the oil and gas services business is returning to good health.”

– by Hieronymus Bosch, Baird Maritime‘s anonymous insider in the world of offshore oil and gas operations

COLUMN | Four restructurings: Saipem saved, DOF goes to the line, Havila un-impairs and Siem surges, plus Maersk enters the wind turbine installation business! [Offshore Accounts]

– “A strong parent company can shield a company against the worst of the market cycle, and the worst adverse shocks fate can throw, allowing them to reap upside when the market finally turns.”

– by Hieronymus Bosch, Baird Maritime‘s anonymous insider in the world of offshore oil and gas operations

AWARDS 2021 | Best OSV – DSV – K&C One – Grani

– “The vessel stands out for combining an original design with a durable steel hull with relatively small size.”

AWARDS 2021 | Best OSV – Medium Crewboat – Tamimi 6 – Grandweld Shipyards

– “The vessel belongs to a series designed to provide greater deadweight capacity at higher speeds and with a deep draught.”

COLUMN | Surprises from the war in Ukraine: BP in Mauritania, P&O Maritime, USM Holdings, Viking Supply Ships, Sevnor, OSM, PXGEO [Offshore Accounts]

– “As the Ukrainian people continue to suffer under Russian attack, companies and their ties to Russia are going to face increasingly difficult questions.”

– by Hieronymus Bosch, Baird Maritime‘s anonymous insider in the world of offshore oil and gas operations

AWARDS 2021 | Best Gangway Supplier – SMST

– “Our motion compensated gangways, the so-called ‘telescopic access bridges’ (TABs), stand out with the lowest energy consumption and highest workability in the market.”

AWARDS 2021 | Best OSV – AHTS – Sayan Prince – Tersan Shipyard

– “She has a fully integrated ROV hangar, a depth rating of 3,000 metres, and a high degree of redundancy for a mechanical driven AHTS in the current market.”

AWARDS 2021 | Best SWATH Crewboat – FOB SWATH 10 – Oma Baatbyggeri

– “Unique features such as the ability to choose between catamaran and SWATH operating mode and specially designed bow fenders offer significantly improved efficiency and safety.”

AWARDS 2021 | Best OSV – Large Crewboat – Jana 21 – Piriou

– “It is a heavy duty vessel with a number of modifications in fulfilment of owner specifications, especially increased speed thanks to a new propulsion system.”

AWARDS 2021 | Best OSV – Small Crewboat – Petro Craft 1905-10 – OCEA

– “The craft offers an increased capacity of 40 seats, compared to 30 for all the other units in the same series that we delivered so far.”

Call for content!

Any news or views about the global offshore industry? Send it through to [email protected] ASAP (between now and May 6), so we can add it to this current edition of Offshore Week!

We are after:

Vessels – Orders, new deliveries, under construction
Gear – Latest innovations and technology in the offshore vessel sector
Interviews – Owners, operators, designers, builders etc.
Reminiscences – Do you have any exciting, amusing or downright dangerous anecdotes from your time in the offshore world? (example here)
Other – Any other relevant news