South Africa-based Nautic Africa and Unique Hydra have been awarded a contract to develop, construct and deliver a davit deployed diving daughter craft for a floating production storage and offloading unit (FSPO) off the West African coast
The vessel will feature single point hoisting and will have a twin-diesel water jet propulsion system. At maximum speed of 20 knots, the vessel is expected to cover a range of 90 nautical miles. The hull of the vessel will be constructed in durable aluminium, while the deckhouse will be made of composite sandwich construction. A foam collar fender will offer protection alongside the FSPO.
A Unique Hydra Nitrox dive control system will, meanwhile, enable three diver operations simultaneously. The vessel will be able to accommodate one coxswain and one diver supervisor in addition to two diver teams of three people. Each diver team will consist of two main divers and one standby diver. The teams will take turns to perform over a six- to eight-hour time period.
According to the South African firm, the contract sees Nautic Africa step towards its goal of providing purpose-built, tailor-made solutions to the West African offshore industry.
Unique Hydra provides commercial diving services and systems, and when approached to provide a diving solution, it turned to Nautic Africa to assist it in developing and constructing a vessel purpose-built for African conditions, the company sources added.
James Fisher, CEO of Nautic Africa, said, “The order has given Nautic Africa the chance to demonstrate the level of technical innovation that is at the heart of the company's business strategy.”
This is reportedly the second collaboration with Unique Hydra in delivering such solutions for the African market — the first collaboration being for 14m DSV delivery to an Angolan client. With minimal changes to the application and overall design, the dive support vessel can be used for patrol, security, policing, sea rescues and for fisheries as well as within the oil and gas industry.
Fisher added, “We’ve been closely involved in the African marine market for the past six years, and during this time, have developed a thorough understanding of the African offshore industry. We understand the dynamics and challenges of the industry and have used this knowledge to support operations in the oil and gas sector and provide customised solutions that meet the needs of our ever-growing client base.”
