Norway's Normand Australis Secures 250-Day Subsea Engineering Services Contract

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 30, Norway's Solstad Maritime ASA (SOMA) disclosed on the Oslo Stock Exchange that its construction support vessel (CSV) Normand Australis has been awarded two firm contracts in the Asia-Pacific region, with a combined firm period of 250 days. The two contracts will be executed consecutively, with operations expected to commence in December 2026. The contracts also include a combined 75 days of options. SOMA estimates the combined value of the two firm contracts at the low end of the "Substantial" range (USD 10-30 million).

The vessel's technical configuration is built around deepwater ROV and subsea intervention operations rather than general offshore transportation. Normand Australis is a 2009-built Conan Wu-type CSV, with an overall length of 82 m, a beam of 20.4 m, a draught of 5.3 m (maximum 5.5 m), a gross tonnage of 4,230, a deadweight of 3,227 t, and accommodation for 118 persons. The cargo deck area of 775 m² provides storage space for subsea equipment, ROV support tools, and project materials. The vessel is classed by DNV GL and flagged under the Norwegian NIS.

Dynamic positioning and lifting capability are the two core hardware conditions enabling this contract to cover deepwater subsea operations. The system's function is to keep the vessel stably held at a fixed position during ROV operations and subsea equipment lifting, preventing ROV umbilical cable loading or lifting load swing caused by vessel position drift. The main crane is 70 t SWL, with an 8.5 m single-lift operating radius and a 32 m dual-lift operating radius, equipped with active heave compensation (AHC); the auxiliary winch is 32 t SWL. The role of AHC is to maintain the vertical position of the hook relative to the seabed stable in waves, which is a necessary condition for operations such as subsea module installation and wellhead equipment intervention.

The moonpool and ROV system directly correspond to the "ROV and subsea support" scope of work in the contract. The vessel features a 25 m² moonpool (5 m × 5 m) and is equipped with 2 work-class ROVs (WROVs). The moonpool allows ROVs to be launched and recovered amidships, away from the bow and stern areas most affected by hull motion, while the dual-ROV configuration supports one unit operating with one on standby or two intervention tasks being performed simultaneously. For a 250-day continuous subsea support contract, the combination of dual ROVs and a dedicated moonpool reduces downtime caused by a single ROV failure.

The propulsion system consists of Z-drive thrusters, with a service speed of 12 knots. The main engines are 2 × Wartsila 6L26, each rated at 2,040 kW (2,774 hp), with one Z-drive thruster on each side. Z-drive thrusters can change thrust direction through 360 degrees and, in coordination with the DP system, achieve precise station-keeping at low speed. The 12-knot service speed is sufficient for mobilization transits between contracts within the Asia-Pacific region, but the vessel's design focus is not on high-speed transportation, but rather on positioning accuracy and equipment support capability at the worksite.