Wärtsilä entered into a contract with Shanghai Bestway Marine Engineering Design Co. last month to design a new type of deepwater dive support vessel (DSV) for China state-owned company Shanghai Salvage Bureau (SSB).
Image from Wärtsilä. |
The Wärtsilä design features a unique combination of capabilities, including deepwater (6000m) salvage operations, deepwater pipe laying and construction work, and saturation (SAT) diving operations for 24 divers using two diving bells. SAT diving is a technique that allows divers to reduce the risk of decompression sickness when working at great depths for extended periods of time. All the design features are based on a single platform operating with DP3, the highest class of dynamic positioning. When built, this will be the world’s first SAT diving support vessel with multi-Lay and ultra deepwater construction capabilities.
The contract with SSB covers initial and basic design of the ship, meaning that class and flag authority related drawings for the purpose of finalizing the necessary approvals and certifications, will be supplied. Wärtsilä will also provide the basic references for future, more detailed engineering requirements for building the vessel.
“For a complex vessel design such as this involving the needed subsea equipment, both extensive experience and broad know-how are absolutely essential,” Riku-Pekka Hägg, Wärtsilä Marine Solutions VP of ship design said.
“The new vessel will certainly be the most sophisticated asset in our fleet. It will carry out operations in very deepwaters and in often difficult conditions. We believe the Wärtsilä design will meet all our requirements for successful operations,” Huang Yan, SSB director of deep diving technology development center said.