ST Engineering's US shipyard bags $441mn deal

The company to produce 8 offshore supply vessels for Hornbeck Offshore Services.

ST Engineering announced today that its US shipyard, VT Halter Marine, has won a shipbuilding contract from Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. (NYSE: HOS). The contract to construct eight 97.2m long Offshore Supply Vessels (OSV) is worth about $441m (US$353m) and has options for up to 24 additional identical vessels.

Based on VT Halter Marine's Super 320 design developed for HOS, the DP2 OSVs are designed to have approximately 20,900 bbl of liquid mud carrying capability, 1102sqm of deck area and a fire-fighting class notation. Construction of the first vessel is expected to commence during the first quarter of 2012 whilst engineering work has already begun. Deliveries of the first and eighth vessels are planned for October 2013 and September 2014 respectively. These vessels will be constructed in VT Halter Marine's yards at Moss Point Marine and Halter Moss Point in Mississippi.

The Super 320 design is based on an enlarged version of an 88-metre Platform Supply Vessel, HOS Coral, which VT Halter Marine had delivered to HOS in March 2009. The Super 320 design has been developed with particular attention to the stringent regulations for environmental stewardship including a double-hull that eliminates any fuel storage adjacent to the sideshell, and propulsion machinery that meets the requirements of EPA Tier 3 for stack emissions.

The first option for the additional vessels is required to be exercised by September 2012 and may be exercised individually or in a series. Delivery dates for option vessels are approximately 26 months following the option exercise.

"VT Halter Marine's design capability and track record has once again been endorsed by Hornbeck, a leading provider of new generation OSV in the US; we look forward to forging an even stronger partnership with Hornbeck." ~ NG Sing Chan, President, ST Marine.