Two new Wärtsilä designed Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessels were delivered from the Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Group yard in China during the second week of September. The ships have been built for China Oilfield Services Ltd (COSL), the largest fleet owner of offshore service vessels in China.
Image: Another two Wärtsilä designed AHTS vessels are to be delivered to COSL this year. Photo courtesy: Wärtsilä
The delivery of these two ships follows the success of the Wärtsilä designs for four AHTS and two Platform Supply Vessels (PSV) delivered in 2015 to the same customer, and which are now in regular operation. The contract for the original six ship designs was placed in December 2012, and another for three new AHTS vessel designs in December 2014.
Wärtsilä received excellent feedback from the customer concerning the six ships already in service, noting especially their efficient designs, successful operation and high performance. As a result of this satisfaction, and because of Wärtsilä’s ship design competences, strong local footprint, and proven track record in the offshore industry, COSL opted to deal directly with Wärtsilä for the design of the two new AHTS vessels.
“Wärtsilä’s vast experience in the design of offshore service vessels resulted in important orders from one of the world’s leading offshore operators. Our value proposition related to reducing total lifecycle costs, the optimisation of energy efficiency, and our emphasis on environmental sustainability is very much aligned with COSL’s own values,” says Riku-Pekka Hägg, Vice President, Ship Design, Wärtsilä Marine Solutions.
“We have great respect for Wärtsilä’s competences and experience in designing successful offshore service vessels. The six Wärtsilä Ship Design vessels in operation since last year are meeting all our expectations and we are extremely satisfied with them. Wärtsilä’s design portfolio is outstanding and we are very pleased to have them as a partner in this latest project,” says Mr Cai Dian, Vice General Manager, China Oilfield Service Limited Shipping.
The AHTS vessels are based on Wärtsilä Ship Design’s VS 4612 design, and have been customised to meet COSL’s operational requirements. The design features a reduced environmental impact and an optimised hull line providing lower fuel consumption.
COSL is a key customer of Wärtsilä and Wärtsilä solutions are installed on a number of vessels in the company’s fleet.
Source: Wärtsilä