A&P Tapped For Oriana Refit
P&O Cruises' flagship, the 69,153-grt Oriana, is to be refitted at A&P Group's Southampton shiprepair facility. The contract for the 21-day refit, rumored to be worth in excess of $1.5 million, has been signed by P&O Cruises and A&P Group, and will begin on April 14 and be completed by May 6. The companies involved in the hotel work include Mivan Marine, Harris Pye (outfitters), Trimline, CLC Marine, and Durastic. This is the second refit for the Oriana, which was built for P&O Cruises by Germany's Meyer Werft, Papenburg, entering service in April 1995. At the time of her first refit, A&P Southampton was unable to bid for the contract because the yard was occupied with other pre-existing contracts.
Competition for this contract came from a number of other Northern European ship repair yards, including Lloyd Werft (Germany), Arno Dunkerque (France) and Cammell Laird (Tyneside).
The scope of work includes a standard drydocking program, which encompasses sea valve removal and maintenance, anchors and thrusters inspection and overhaul where necessary, main and auxiliary engine inspection and maintenance, and hull inspection and maintenance where necessary. A&P will also be applying a full below the water line paint system, supplied by International Paint, and a repaint job on the ship's superstructure.
A&P Southampton has recently completed a two-ship refit order from Norway's Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, involving the Black Watch and Black Prince.
Following the recent decision by Shell to use Singapore's Sembawang Shipyard as a base for repairs in the foreseeable future, there has been another such deal. This time Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) has signed an alliance agreement with Singapore's Jurong Shipyard Ltd. (JSL), covering all repairs, conversions, upgrading and maintenance of ships managed by NOL subsidiary Neptune Shipmanagement Ltd.
Egypt's Port Said Shipyard (PSS) has recently taken delivery of a 17,000-ton lifting capacity floating dock, which is currently undergoing refurbishment operations and is expected to be ready for operations during the middle part of this year. There are currently two other floating docks at the yard suitable for the repair of ships up to 20,000 dwt. PSS' main market is Suez Canal Authority (SCA) ships, 52 of which were docked/repaired last year. There were also 11 commercial ships repaired last year.
Varna-based shiprepair specialist, Odessos Shiprepair Yard, Bulgaria, has now received approval for the sale of a 25 percent holding to a management buy-out, named KRZ Invest, for $3.26 million, from the Bulgarian privatization agency. With the deal being delayed for several months, the agency has now changed its mind over adjoining wharves, which the agency thought was nothing to do with the capital of the yard. Under Bulgaria's mass sell-off privatization, just over two-thirds of the yard's total capital was sold against privatization vouchers two years ago.
Facilities at the yard include a 787 ft. x 89 ft. (240 m x 27 m) graving dock, capable of dockings ships up to 35,000 dwt; two floating docks, one 525 ft. x 39 ft. (160 m x 12m) at 4,100 tons lifting capacity (1/c) and the other 525 ft. x 89 ft. (160 x 27 m) at 12,000 tons 1/c; and approximately 4,000 ft. (1,200 m) of repair quays.
South Africa's Dorbyl Marine has recently confirmed that as the company enters the final quarter of its financial year, the expectation for the full-year remains bullish despite difficult market conditions. From this basis, the shiprepairer has in operation a strategic plan to expand its business in both the shiprepair and other marine-related market sectors. By combining the substantial resources of the Dorbyl Engineering Division with Dorbyl Marine, several ventures are anticipated for this year and the distant future. Repair facilities in South Africa are currently well positioned to secure substantial projects from the West African coast offshore oilfields: the re-vitalization of the Mossgas Project, the forthcoming armaments approved budget and the proposed upgrading by Portnet, the state-owned port authority, of the shiprepair facilities in Durban, Cape Town and East London.
This overall potential has made the business attractive to some international and local companies as an investment. The Dorbyl Group is very optimistic at present about the future of this business, citing Dorbyl Marine Ltd. as one of its blue-chip divisions.
Ships recently at the yard undergoing repair work include Noordkap's 49,730-dwt containership Heemskerck (which is being undertaken in a joint venture with Elgin, Brown & Hamer), Novoship's 16,940-dwt RoRo vessel Sochi, and Maramaras' 37,636-dwt bulk carrier Panormos.
Elsewhere in South Africa, Elgin, Brown & Hamer (EBH), with ship repair facilities in the port of Durban, has taken delivery of an 8,500-ton lifting capacity floating dock, which is the first privately-owned shiprepair facility in South Africa. Keppel Corp. has decided to pull out of the Keppel Cairncross Shipyard Ltd. in Australia after sustaining continuous losses. A company statement said that the group has appointed a voluntary administrator to assess and decide the yard's future, whether it be sold or closed. The repair yard, which was crippled by a bitter industrial dispute during last year, has failed to deliver the Singapore conglomerate a profit since Keppel Corp. acquired a majority stake in 1994.
Facilities at the Brisbane-based yard include a 864 ft. x 107 ft. (263.2 m x 32.5 m) graving dock, capable of docking ships up to 85,000 dwt, and 1,006 ft. (306.7 m) of repair quays, with a maximum draft of 29.8 ft. (9.1 m).
Following a 10-month conversion project at Fredrikshavn's Orskov Staalskibsvaerft, where the Kommander 3000 was converted from a RoRo vessel to an ROV support vessel recently, the vessel is once again to undergo the chop, with Viktor Lenac, Croatia winning the contract to convert her into a sophisticated pipelaying vessel. The vessel, which has been contracted by Oslo's DSND Sondenfjedske ASA, is to carry out a contract DSND secured from Brazilian oil major Petrobras for laying flexible pipeline in Brazil.
Work onboard the vessel will include lengthening the hull by 69 ft. (21 m) and widening it by 5 ft. (1.5 m), upgrading the bowthrusters (with the addition of an Ulstein 1,300 kW azimuth thruster), and installing an extensive pipelaying system. A Cegelec duplex dynamic positioning system will also be fitted, as well as two moonpools for ROV work. She is expected to be at the yard until the end of June.
Gdansk Shiprepair Yard (GSY-Remontowa), has had a good start to the year with another conversion project. GSY-Remontowa is to convert DFDS' 18,888-grt passenger RoRo vessel Admiral of Ml if The Black Watch in A&P Southampton. Scandinavia, with work including the construction and installation of two 5 ft. (1.5 m) wide sponsons, each weighing 270 tons. The project also includes port and side ports (bunkering and pilot) installation, replacement of all fire doors between car deck and lower deck compartments, strengthening of main trunk, installation of MES and upgrading accommodation blocks. The vessel is expected to be at the yard for a total of four weeks.
GSY-Remontowa is also involved in the hull conversion of the sea-going yacht Polarex. The vessel is being converted into a research and training vessel for up to 75 passengers (including 40 students).
Work includes lengthening the hull via the insertion of an 26 ft. (8 m) steel section, re-engining, renewal of tailshaft and propeller, construction of superstructure, outfitting and installation of ships' systems. The contract was awarded by Poland's Gdynia Maritime Academy (GMC). Lisbon-based Lisnave International, which has the same shareholder as major shiprepairer Lisnave, is set to acquire shiprepair interests in Senegal, currently negotiating to play a leading role at the Dakar-based yard. Apart from this acquisition, Lisnave International already has activities in Mozambique (Beira) and Angola (Luanda and Lobito). Management at Lisnave International hoped to sign an agreement in January for a 25-year concession to operate the shipyard formerly run by state-owned Dakar Marine, now in liquidation.
Following the award of a tender against French competition, Dakarnave, a company created for this purpose, was selected to enter talks with public company SIRN, the capital of which is owned by the Senegal state. The state is to supply the infrastructure, and Dakarnave the management and majority of the equipment, and would pay a basic annual rent, supplemented by commissions in work awarded.
The facility has one floating dock, capable of docking ships up to 60,000 dwt, and a single lift with five pontoons mainly for locally-owned fishing vessels and small craft.
By the end of the first quarter of 1999, Manila-based Subsea Services Inc., is hoping to have expanded its operations in Cebu, central Philippines, by establishing a service station and equipment center. Due to problems with land transportation in the Philippines, Subsea Services' Capt. Raymond Dodkin, part-founder of the company in 1997, said: "Having a base in Cebu will cut out response time for ships and marine installations requiring our services in central and southern Philippines." Recent work carried out includes survey work to one of Keppel Cebu Shipyards drydocks, underwater repairs to one of K Line's ships, pre-sale surveys for a Greek and Italian buyer, and post-typhoon pipeline surveys for a local oil company.
