Global demand for deepwater exploration is driving up the cost and value of the offshore supply boat sector, where bigger boats with greater tonnages and higher horsepower are needed to accomplish more tasks.

Construction of offshore supply boats peaked between 1980 and 1985 as the shallowwater oil boom took off. Consequently, the workboat industry was quiet until the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Then the North Sea action came on stream in a big way and created a surge in workboat evolution to handle it.
But twenty years later, greater water depths are being tackled, and rigs and platforms that operate there need deepwater supply boats to keep them working.
Anders Almestad, executive vice president of offshore for Rolls-Royce Marine, said the main reason for the market upturn is the move from shallow to deeper water. "And for that reason there is a change in technology," he said. "There is a need for more high-technology and bigger-sized ships than before.
"The biggest increase is on winches for anchor-handling tugs (AHTs). We also need ships with a higher bollard pull to perform these duties. That is the main criteria."
This market upturn is in the medium-size sector for anchor-handling tug supply (AHTS) vessels, with power outputs typically between 10,000 bhp and 12,000 bhp, according to Norwegian design group Moss Maritime.
"The main volume of existing medium-size AHTS was built in the early 1980s. Consequently, there is a replacement need (for) modern and state-of-the-art equipment," said Moss Maritime spokesman Lars Martin Sørhaug.
Conversely, the large AHTS market, defined as 18,000 bhp and above, is much smaller in volume, and the fleet is generally much newer, Sørhaug said. "Do not expect very many new orders in this segment." He said he expects these new, high-capacity boats to be geared toward Gulf of Mexico and Brazilian operations, but the number will not be as great as the growth in new medium-size AHTS vessels.
Overall rising boat demand is logical; rigs operating in deeper water require greater anchor line, which is heavier - hence, the power demand. Installed fixed platforms are moving farther offshore, meaning the distance traveled by workboats is being stretched. Also, new AHTs need to offer a higher payload and deck capacity - to carry the greater weight of anchor chain, mud and ancillary supplies required, Sørhaug said.
New types of mooring for deep water, such as taut-leg systems with fiber ropes, and buoyancy tanks also require different handling equipment. All capacities increase with additional chain and rope, Sørhaug said. The weight of the mooring systems also drives bollard pull as well as size of vessel, he added. The same applies for any other anchor- or wire-moored units operating in deep water, such as accommodation and heavy-lift barges.
Often customers require workboats with a bollard pull of 250 tonnes or 300 tonnes, Almestad said.
He said horsepower requirements from customers are clearly on the increase. In the 1980s, an Ulstein UT704 design offered a typical bollard pull of 70 tonnes, 80 tonnes or even 90 tonnes.
Today those numbers just aren't high enough.
Ships operating in the North Sea's typical 330-ft (100-m) waters are no longer up to the mark for these newer deepwater regions, and the changing tide demands bigger and more sophisticated boats. These boats often require dynamic positioning and must provide an array of other offshore services.
Almestad defines deep water as 1,620 ft to 1,968 ft (500 m to 600 m) and deeper. "Ship tonnage is increasing," he said, with much higher deadweights, ranging up to 5,000 dwt. Boats destined to operate in Asia can be smaller because of the generally milder climate there. But offshore Brazil, the North Atlantic, the Norwegian Sea and off northeast Canada, where there are rougher seas, larger ships are necessary. "You see bigger designs coming," Almestad said.
In July 2001, shipbuilder Aker Brattvaag bought 51% of Brazil's Promar shipyard, where it said it would concentrate on the offshore sector, "including the burgeoning market for offshore supply vessels for use in Brazil's oil fields," the company said.
West African deepwater exploration and development and expanding activity on Australia's northwest shelf is forcing the boat market toward larger vessels as well.
Demand is expected to be high in other regions as well, particularly outside the North Sea, where older vessels are working.
Canada and northwest and northeast Russia will require special designs with ice-breaking capabilities, Sørhaug said. "Increased activities in the Caspian Sea will also require increased supply activities," he added. But it is difficult to estimate the potential here because projects such as BP's Shah Deniz and development of the north Caspian Kashagan field are still at early stages.
Value
Today's offshore supply boats are increasing in value, and typically a new-build can command a construction cost in the region of US $11 million to $39.51 million (NKr 100 million to NKr 350 million).
Almestad also pointed to the rising value of second-hand ships. "The peak of building was between 1980 and 1985," he said. "These vessels are now 20 years old, and there is a need to replace these. That is also giving support to the market."
Rolls-Royce Marine has 70 vessels on order from shipyards in such diverse locations as Brazil, Canada, Korea, Singapore and Norway.
But Rolls-Royce Marine itself has no plans to go into the construction side of the market. "We are specialists in equipment and design," Almestad said.
Instead, the company is content to surf the trend toward deepwater vessels. "Since there is less and less oil in shallow water, there will be more of an exodus towards deep water. And the tonnage (already operating in) shallow water cannot be utilized in deep water, so there will be a continuous market demand for these type of ships," said Almestad.
Looking ahead 5, 10 or even 15 years, Rolls-Royce Marine expects the demand for high-technology boats to progress. "If you look at the technology on the exploration side, what has been happening is...technology utilization in oil fields has improved a lot," the Rolls-Royce Marine vice president said. It is therefore logical to expect greater technology take-up on workboats as their sophistication evolves from simple delivery systems to more versatile offshore tools.
On fields such as Norway's Ekofisk, which has been producing since the early 1970s, and where the recovery rate has almost doubled to about 60%, the technology limit for enhanced oil recovery is close to being reached, Almestad said. So the only option for boat owners is to look for fresh opportunities - and that means heading deeper. "That will be the trend."
Units also will need to be even more versatile in the future, Rolls-Royce Marine said, to offer not just anchor-handling but also bulk-handling systems - containerization - as well as the ability to handle remotely operated vehicle functions. Offshore maintenance requirements will put additional design pressures on boats, requiring them to maintain pipeline and subsea systems as well.
Finally, these vessels also will need to be "greener," as operators and contractors are obligated to reduce emissions to protect the environment, focus on oil spillage and recovery equipment and meet other operational requirements.
Orders
With 70 new ship designs worth about $358.33 million (£250 million) on its order book, Rolls-Royce Marine has set a record for itself, spokesman Arnfinn Ingjerd said.
A year ago, Rolls-Royce had logged 53 orders for its UT-design offshore service vessels and equipment packages, and 70% of those had been placed during a 12-month period. Twelve of those had been ordered in 2000, worth $64 million (£40 million), and the orders brought the total value to Rolls-Royce for these designs to $272 million (£170 million).
Dr. Saul Lanyado, president of marine for Rolls-Royce, said then: "The increase in demand has come rapidly. After a quiet period in late 1999 and early 2000 caused by uncertainties in the offshore oil and gas industry, owners have started investing for the future. Since the summer of 2000, UT designs for 43 offshore service vessels have been chosen by ship owners in many countries, including the United States."
Those orders, due for delivery through 2003, include 16 anchor handlers using the UT722 design. Another 19 orders are for the much favored UT755 PSV design in either short or long versions, while others include the UT745 and newer UT710, UT728 and UT738 AHTS designs.
Subsequently, in December 2001, Rolls-Royce Marine revealed a further nine new offshore support vessel equipment orders worth $86.4 million (£54 million). Six of these are for UT712 or UT722 designs, and the other three are for UT755 PSVs. All are due to be constructed and delivered in 2003 and 2004.
Elsewhere, several orders have been placed for new workboats, many using Rolls-Royce Ulstein designs. Solstad Offshore of Norway has contracted Kleven Marine to build a new UT745E PSV worth $25 million for delivery in October. Waveney Shipping Ltd. has placed a $14.65 million order with Aker Brattvaag to build a U755L PSV - an extension of the existing U755 design - for which Rolls-Royce is supplying design and marine equipment worth $3.38 million. The hull, to be built in Romania, is due for delivery in April 2003.
Aker Brattvaag and the Norwegian Brevik group have together built 22 vessels of this type; they have another 16 under construction or on order.
Furthermore, after Aker Brattvaag bought the controlling interest in the Estaleiro Promar I shipyard in Brazil, it landed an order in August 2001 from Tidewater for a new platform supply boat due for delivery in December. This unit, another UT755L equipped with dynamic positioning and oil recovery equipment, is the fourth in a series by Promar. It is to be built for Mare Alta Navegação do Brasil Ltda., which is controlled by the Tidewater Group.
When the Tidewater order was placed, Leif-Arne Langøy, chairman of Promar and president and chief executive of Aker yards, referred to what he called "the rapidly growing Brazilian offshore market."
The same shipyard also has clinched work constructing a UT755L for delivery by July 2003 on behalf of NorSkan Offshore - jointly owned by Norway's Solstad Offshore and DOF.
Apart from the general offshore supply boat boom, Ingjerd cited the relatively high oil price - about $20/ bbl at press time - as one factor creating the upbeat market environment.
"There is also high activity in Brazil, the North Sea and Asia, where our designs have a positive market position," he said.
Rolls-Royce Marine will not building all the new vessel designs it has sold. Instead, it will export designs, and the actual construction of the vessels - offshore PSVs, anchor-handling vessels or other variants - will be handled by shipyards in Brazil, China, Denmark, Japan, Korea, Norway and Singapore.
The company will supply not only the design for the vessels, but also key maritime equipment. "We deliver a vessel as an integrated solution," said Ingjerd. "In addition to the ship design, we deliver most of the key ship equipment." That includes engines, steering gear, thrusters, deck machinery, propellers and control systems.
Moss Maritime, famous for developing the Seabase offshore airfield concept for the US Navy and other offshore facilities, also recently added new workboat designs to the market.
Its Moss 808 ICE design saw three vessels built during 2000 and 2001 for Viking Supply and the Swedish Maritime Administration. Another design, Moss 404, was used on 10 vessels built between 1998 and 1999 for various owners. And the latest concept, Moss 424, is under construction at Norway's Havyard Leirvik shipyard for Italian vessel operator Rimorchiatori Riuniti SpA (Reunited Tugs). It's due for delivery in January 2003, and the deal includes an option for a second vessel to be delivered in May 2003.
This is the eighth Moss 424 AHTS unit built by Havyard since 1998, and it is based on a KMAR 404 design, of which the shipyard has built four units (Table 1). Officially, it is called an anchor-handling supply vessel with a bollard pull rating of 180 tonnes. It has a length of just more than 230 ft (70 m).
The company has designed more than 50 vessels, which have been built by shipyards in Norway, Europe, Asia and Australia. Most have been AHTS craft.
Gulf Offshore recently commissioned a new supply boat, the Gargano, which cost $19.2 million (£12 million) and was built by Aker Maritime to a UT755L design. Gulf will manage the vessel, which replaces a previous boat sold to Tidewater 2 years ago, to support Shell Expro platform operations in the North Sea.
Another UT755 L design will join the offshore supply sector after Aberdeen, Scotland-based George Craig Group announced plans to invest $17.6 million (£11 million) in a moonpool-equipped boat.
This vessel, which is another construction contract for Aker Brattvaag's yard at Soviknes in Norway, will have a length of 236 ft (72 m), a beam of 52 ft (16 m) and two Berger KRMB9 engines, giving it a power output of 5,460 bhp. The boat will provide 7,556 sq ft (680 sq m) of deck space.
"Although intended for the ROV survey light construction markets, the ship has full underdecks, which will make it a very capable platform supply vessel," said the group, which has a fleet of 30 workboats.
North Star Shipping in Aberdeen will manage and market the vessel.
Logistics
Operating workboats is a specialist activity, and several companies are carving out a slice of the action in this sector.
Asco has built market share in the North Sea by winning agreements to supply several platforms owned by the same operator, most recently with TotalFinaElf in the UK sector. There it won a 3-year deal to provide offshore support to the operator's Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets and Elgin Franklin fields.
Under the deal, signed in December 2001, Asco provides onshore warehousing and quayside services from Aberdeen, supporting workboats serving the company's offshore installations and drilling activity.

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