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Tidewater Buys Three PSVs Under Construction at STX OSV (Norway)

STX OSV Holdings Limited (“STX OSV”), one of the major global designers and shipbuilders of offshore and specialized vessels, announced that Tidewater Inc. (“Tidewater”) has acquired contracts for three Platform Supply Vessels (PSVs) under construction at STX OSV in Norway.

STX OSV had originally secured the contracts for the design and construction of three vessels for STX Pan Ocean Co. Ltd. in 2010, and Tidewater has now entered into an assignment agreement with STX Pan Ocean to take over these contracts. The first vessel in the series will be delivered to Tidewater during 1Q 2013. Deliveries of the next two vessels are scheduled for Q2 and Q3 2013.

Mr. Roy Reite, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of STX OSV, said, “STX OSV has in the past delivered ten offshore vessels to Tidewater. We are delighted to welcome Tidewater back to us as a client, and we look forward to cooperating with their team again.”

The vessels are of STX OSV PSV 09 design, developed by STX OSV Design in Ålesund, Norway. The overall length of the vessels is 87.9 meters, with a beam of 19 meters. The hulls are built at STX OSV Tulcea in Romania. Two vessels will be delivered from STX OSV Søviknes, the third from STX OSV Aukra in Norway.

World Maritime News – Tidewater Buys Three PSVs Under Construction at STX OSV (Norway).

 

Norway: Vestnes FMT Secures Another Contract from Ulstein

Vestnes FMT has received a contract for 4 newbuildings from Ulstein Verft in Ulsteinvik. Newbuildings 296, 297, 298 and 299, being built for Blue Ship Invest, will be equipped with state-of-the-art “Willy” furniture packages.

These four newbuildings are medium-sized platform supply vessels (PSV) of PX121 design and are scheduled for delivery from Ulstein Verft in 2013.

Vestnes Ocean is a turn key supplier of accommodation solutions for the maritime industry. The company has developed its own concept of ship furniture named “Willy”, especially made for the life onboard, together with the designers Ralston & Bau.

Shipbuilding Tribune – Norway: Vestnes FMT Secures Another Contract from Ulstein.

Hornbeck Expands OSV Newbuild Program (USA)

Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. announced today that it has expanded its OSV Newbuild Program #5 and has commenced a new 200 Class OSV Retrofit Program, among other recent developments.

Expansion of OSV Newbuild Program #5:

The Company has exercised the first four of its 48 options to build additional HOSMAX vessels at an aggregate incremental cost of approximately $180 million, excluding construction period interest, for vessel deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2014 and first quarter of 2015. These four new vessels will expand the Company’s fifth OSV newbuild program, which was announced in November 2011, from 16 vessels to a total of 20 U.S.-flagged HOSMAX class DP-2 new generation offshore supply vessels (“OSVs”) for its Upstream business segment.

These 20 vessels are being built at two shipyards in the United States, which qualifies them for coastwise trade in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (“GoM”) under the Jones Act; however, the Company expects them to service the anticipated increase in deepwater and ultra-deepwater drilling activity in all three of the Company’s core geographic markets of the GoM, Brazil and Mexico. The HOSMAX class DP-2 vessel designs contemplated by this newbuild program feature three different size vessels (300, 310 and 320 feet in length) each with cargo-carrying capacities ranging from 5,650 to 6,200 deadweight tons and more than 20,000 barrels of liquid mud. The Company considers the option vessel pricing to compare favorably with all other recently announced newbuild programs for vessels of similar size and specifications.

In connection with exercising the first four shipyard options under this high-spec OSV newbuild program, the Company was able to extend the exercise dates for its 44 remaining options by approximately 60 days each without changing the favorable pricing and original delivery dates. Accordingly, the Company’s decision with respect to the exercise of the next option at each of the two shipyards is now not due until February 1, 2013 and February 19, 2013, respectively. These exercise date extensions afford the Company more time to assess market conditions before determining whether and to what extent to exercise additional options. In addition to the 20 newbuild vessels already committed that are scheduled to be placed in service on various dates between the second quarter of 2013 and the first quarter of 2015, the delivery dates for the remaining 44 vessels, if such options are exercised, will be approximately 24 to 26 months following the date of each respective option exercise, with the last potential newbuild vessel under this program (the 48th optional and 64th overall) to be delivered in January 2018. The Company currently intends to exercise all of its remaining 44 options to build additional HOSMAX class vessels should future market conditions, the pace of permitting in the GoM and its company-wide fleet complement continue to warrant their construction, providing the Company a very attractive, strategic five-year organic growth opportunity.

The Company expects the aggregate cost of the first 20 vessels committed under this potential 64-vessel construction program, including the four option vessels announced today, to be approximately $900 million, excluding construction period interest. At June 30, 2012, the Company had a cash balance of approximately $392 million and added net cash proceeds of approximately $266 million to the balance sheet from its 1.500% convertible notes offering, which closed on August 13, 2012. Together with cash on-hand and available capacity under its currently undrawn $300 million revolving credit facility, and based on the key assumptions outlined in the Company’s August 3, 2012 earnings release, the Company expects to generate sufficient cash flow from operations to cover all of its growth capital expenditures for the first 20 HOSMAX vessels under construction, all of the capital costs related to its new six-vessel 200 class OSV retrofit program discussed below, the planned retirement of its 1.625% convertible notes in November 2013, and all of its annually recurring cash debt service, maintenance capital expenditures and cash income taxes for the remainder of fiscal 2012 and for the full duration of the currently committed 20-vessel HOSMAX newbuild program.

In summary, the Company’s fifth OSV newbuild program now consists of vessel construction contracts with two domestic shipyards to build four HOSMAX 300 class OSVs, six HOSMAX 310 class OSVs (up two from the previously announced four), and ten HOSMAX 320 class OSVs (up two from the previously announced eight).

Based on the above schedule of projected vessel in-service dates, the Company expects to own and operate 51, 56, 69 and 71 new generation OSVs as of December 31, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively. These vessel additions result in a projected average new generation OSV fleet complement of 51.0, 52.2, 63.0 and 70.9 vessels for the fiscal years 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively. The aggregate cost of the Company’s fifth OSV newbuild program, excluding construction period interest, is expected as noted above to be approximately $900.0 million, of which $242.2 million, $429.8 million, $178.5 million and $6.9 million is expected to be incurred in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively. From the inception of this program through June 30, 2012, the Company had incurred $120.4 million, or 13.4%, of total expected project costs, including $41.0 million that was spent during the second quarter of 2012.

Commencement of 200 Class OSV Retrofit Program:

In addition to the expansion of its HOSMAX newbuild program, the Company has decided to move forward on a new retrofit program that will upgrade and stretch six of its 200 class DP-1 new generation OSVs converting them into 240 class DP-2 OSVs. The vessels the Company has committed to this program are six of its ten Super 200 class DP-1 vessels, four of which are the vessels that recently completed two-year charters with Petrobras in Brazil. These new generation OSVs were built in 1999 and 2000 and were acquired by the Company in 2007. Due to their 56-foot wide beams, the planned 40-foot mid-body extensions and DP-upgrades are expected to add approximately 600 tons to the vessels’ 2,250 tons of current deadweight capacity and roughly double the vessels’ current liquid-mud capacity to approximately 8,000 barrels. The Company is now in the process of finalizing negotiations with a domestic shipyard it has selected and expects to enter into a definitive contract in the very near future. Based on preliminary estimates, the Company expects the yard to complete two of the six vessels in each of the following redelivery months: May 2013, August 2013 and December 2013, respectively.

The project costs for these discretionary vessel modifications are expected to be approximately $50.0 million, in the aggregate, and the Company expects to incur approximately 762 vessel-days of aggregate commercial downtime for the six vessels (127 vessel-days each), as follows:

Other than a modest amount of cash outlays and commercial downtime in the third and fourth quarters of 2012, this retrofit program is not expected to materially impact the Company’s financial results for fiscal 2012. However, upon completion of this program in 2013, the Company expects the newly retrofitted 240 class DP-2 vessels to command higher dayrates, higher margins and higher returns-on-invested-capital than they would have as 200 class DP-1 vessels, such that the Company anticipates a cash-on-cash pay-back of its additional capital investment within approximately 2.5 years. Given the market’s preference for high-spec DP-2 vessels and the Company’s relatively low pro forma net book value for its retrofitted vessels compared to the construction costs of comparable newbuilds in the market today, the Company should be even more competitive in meeting customers’ demand for high-spec vessels at very attractive relative economics.

Prospectively, the Company will report the projected cash outlays for its 200 Class OSV Retrofit Program under the caption “Maintenance and Other Capital Expenditures,” rather than “Growth Capital Expenditures.” Accordingly, the following figures will update and supersede the forward-looking guidance the Company provided in its earnings release on August 3, 2012. The Company now expects maintenance capital expenditures and other capital expenditures to be approximately $58.2 million and $17.4 million, respectively, for the full-year 2012. The Company now expects maintenance capital expenditures and other capital expenditures to be approximately $39.2 million and $50.0 million, respectively, for fiscal 2013, with the cash outlays relating to the 200 Class OSV Retrofit Program included in the latter category. For fiscal 2014, the Company expects that its annually recurring maintenance capital expenditure and other capital expenditure budget, in the aggregate, for its company-wide fleet of vessels will range between $45.0 million and $55.0 million.

GAAP Treatment of Recently Issued 1.500% Convertible Notes:

In accordance with ASC 470-20, convertible debt that may be wholly or partially settled in cash is required to be separated into a liability and an equity component, such that interest expense reflects the issuer’s nonconvertible debt interest rate. Upon issuance, a non-cash original issue discount (“OID”) is recognized as a decrease in debt and an increase in equity. The debt component accretes up to the principal amount over the expected term of the debt. ASC 470-20 does not affect the actual aggregate principal amount of the convertible notes that the Company is required to repay, nor does it impact the actual amount of cash coupon that the Company is required to pay with respect to the convertible notes.

On August 13, 2012, the Company closed on the issuance of $300 million in aggregate principal amount of 1.500% convertible senior notes due 2019 (the “1.500% convertible notes”). The Company’s estimated nonconvertible debt interest rate on such date was 5.75%, based on indicative market quotes for the Company’s publicly traded 5.875% senior notes due 2020. Therefore, as of the date of issuance of the 1.500% convertible notes and in accordance with the GAAP treatment described above, the Company recognized $73.3 million of non-cash OID, which decreased the book carrying value of the 1.500% convertible notes and increased the Company’s additional paid-in-capital equity account by a like amount. Such non-cash OID will be amortized through interest expense over the seven-year life of the 1.500% convertible notes. Accordingly, while the incremental annual run-rate of cash interest expense for the 1.500% convertible notes will be a constant $4.5 million, the gross book interest expense for such notes for financial reporting purposes will vary from year-to-year. The initial annual run-rate of GAAP interest expense for such notes is expected to be approximately $13.3 million. However, GAAP interest expense is expected to fluctuate based on the levels of capitalized construction period interest.

Due to changes in the timing of certain cash interest payment dates associated with the Company’s recent retirement of its 6.125% senior notes in March and April 2012, the issuance of its 5.875% senior notes in March 2012, and the issuance of its 1.500% convertible notes in August 2012, aggregate annual cash debt service for the full fiscal-year 2012 is expected to be $42.2 million. However, inclusive of the planned redemption of its 1.625% convertible notes in November 2013, the Company expects to incur aggregate annual cash debt service for the full fiscal-year 2013 in the amount of $52.3 million, excluding any cash interest expense related to potential revolver draws. Commencing with fiscal 2014 and beyond, the Company’s aggregate annual run-rate of cash debt service should revert to $48.0 million, excluding any cash interest expense related to potential revolver draws.

Hurricane Isaac Update:

The Company experienced no damage to any of its vessels as a result of Hurricane Isaac, including those currently under construction or in drydock at various GoM shipyards, although such yards may claim force majeure delays that may have occurred as a result of the storm. In addition, Hurricane Isaac did not result in customer cancellations of any pre-storm spot or term vessel charters. The Company’s new generation Upstream fleet continues to operate in-line with its pre-storm utilization guidance reported on August 3, 2012, which remains subject to, and primarily driven by, the pace of permitting in the GoM. No physical damage related to Hurricane Isaac occurred to the Company’s corporate headquarters in Covington, LA, which remains fully operational with all electrical power, Internet connectivity and telecommunications service. In addition, HOS Port, the Company’s logistics shore-base in Port Fourchon, LA, is fully operational.

ATP Reorganization Proceeding:

ATP Oil and Gas, Inc., a customer of the Company, initiated a reorganization proceeding under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code on August 17, 2012. As of the date of the bankruptcy filing, ATP was indebted to the Company in the amount of approximately $4.8 million. While the Company believes that its claims are secured by liens arising under law, it is too early in the proceeding to assess ATP’s plans and ability to repay the Company. ATP has indicated its plan is to reorganize and to that end has received post-petition financing. The Company will pursue all rights in the bankruptcy case in order to maximize its recovery.

Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. is a leading provider of technologically advanced, new generation offshore supply vessels primarily in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and Latin America, and is a leading short-haul transporter of petroleum products through its coastwise fleet of ocean-going tugs and tank barges primarily in the northeastern U.S. and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Hornbeck Offshore currently owns a fleet of 80 vessels primarily serving the energy industry.

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GulfMark Orders Two Platform Supply Vessels from BAE Systems (USA)

GulfMark Americas, Inc. has selected BAE Systems’ shipyard in Mobile, Alabama to build two new platform supply vessels that will serve offshore drilling operations. The contract reflects continued growth in U.S. commercial shipbuilding for BAE Systems and a major step forward in the company’s support to the oil and gas industry.

Each of the GulfMark vessels will be qualified under the U.S. Jones Act and will measure 288 feet long and 62 feet wide. The selection also includes options to build two additional platform supply vessels in the future.

“GulfMark is excited about partnering with BAE Systems on this important project,” said David Rosenwasser, chief operating officer of GulfMark Offshore. “BAE Systems demonstrated unique capabilities that are essential to us, and we look forward to building a long-term relationship going forward.”

The design for the BAE Systems-built Green DP2 vessels will be provided by MMC Ship Design & Marine Consulting, Ltd. of Poland and will be based on similar platform supply vessels currently under construction for GulfMark abroad. The new vessels will be U.S. flagged and will support the anticipated future demand in the Gulf of Mexico offshore market, as well as other areas around the world as necessary.

“This contract reinforces our commitment to new construction in the commercial market and strengthens BAE Systems’ position as a highly competitive and financially stable builder of technically sophisticated ships,” said Richard McCreary, vice president of BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards. “We continue to grow our backlog of projects and build our workforce in Mobile.”

The GulfMark contract is part of a recent expansion at the Mobile shipyard. Last month, the company teamed with Mid Ocean Tanker Company and Alterna Capital to complete the American Phoenix, a U.S. flag/Jones Act-qualified product chemical tanker. Measuring 616 feet long and 105 feet wide, it is the largest vessel ever built and launched in the State of Alabama. BAE Systems has also begun construction on the MV Magdalen, a trailing suction hopper dredge that is scheduled to be delivered in 2014.

In addition to the vessels under construction in Mobile, BAE Systems announced in June that it was awarded a contract with Great Lakes Dock & Dredge Company to build two dump scows, which are used for dredging operations. Construction on the 262-foot-long dump scows is expected to start in October.

BAE Systems currently employs more than 650 people in Mobile and expects to hire an additional 275 workers there by the end of this year.

With state-of-the-art craft shops and fabrication facilities, no job is too big or too small for BAE Systems — from container and supply vessels to mega-yachts and tugs. Serving both military and commercial markets, the company operates six full-service shipyards in Mobile, Alabama; San Francisco and San Diego, California; Jacksonville, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

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Blue Ship Orders Four Platform Supply Vessels from Ulstein (Norway)

Market trends and very good feedback from the first ship in operation triggers Blue Ship Invest to contract another four platform supply vessels (PSVs) of the PX121 design from ULSTEIN. All four are scheduled for delivery in 2013.

The investment company Blue Ship Invest received its first vessel, ‘Blue Fighter’, from Ulstein Verft in January this year, and will receive the second vessel in Q3. “’Blue Fighter’ has been working for the oil company Apache for several months, and we have received very good feedback from Remøy Shipping, who manages the vessel on our behalf. The feedback, combined with developments in the PSV market, leads us to contract a series of another four PSVs of the same design,” says CEO Gunvor Ulstein in Ulstein Group.

Gunvor Ulstein adds that while ULSTEIN’s expertise is in design, system solutions and ship construction, ship management is not a part of the company’s business scope. “We will make arrangements for the management of the vessels, but I emphasize that all six vessels are for sale,” she says.

Captain Inge Gjelsten gives ‘Blue Fighter’ the following assessment: “I have worked on board several newbuilds, but ’Blue Fighter’ is the best of them by far. A vessel of this type is my preferred choice for the North Sea. ‘Blue Fighter’ is remarkably efficient and comfortable in all weather conditions. Wind and seas have little impact on the vessel’s performance compared to conventional PSVs. We can compare performance directly when steaming on the same tracks to the oil fields: With the same weather conditions and 3-5 metres head sea within 30 degrees of the bow, our ship can easily and comfortably maintain a speed of 12-13 knots, while the other vessels have to reduce their speed to 7-8 knots. The higher speed is a result of the ‘X-BOW® effect’. Also, due to the position of the stabilisation tanks on board, ‘Blue Fighter’ operates extremely well when wind and seas approach from the side.”

PX121 is a medium-sized platform supply vessel, with a length of 83.4 metres and a beam of 18 metres. It has a cargo deck of 875 square metres and a load capacity of 4200 tonnes (dwt). It has a maximum speed of approximately 15 knots and modern accommodation for 24 persons.

Efficiency and flexibility has been the focus in the development of this design. The ship is adapted to the requirements for longer and deeper boreholes and activities further from shore. In addition to tanks for oil, water and drilling fluids, the vessel has four stainless steel tanks for flammable liquids. The vessel is equipped with a dynamic positioning system Class II and meets the requirements of DNV’s Clean Design and ICE-C notations. The ship is also equipped with catalysts for all four main engines.

The X-BOW® hull line design offers efficiency over a wide draught range, which is important for PSVs as they frequently operate with varying loads. Moreover, the X-BOW has unique, advantageous qualities in terms of motion and propulsion efficiency in moderate and heavy seas. Both the hull and choice of propulsion system make the vessel particularly suited for North Sea and North Atlantic conditions.

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Norway: Captain Praises Ulstein-built ‘Blue Fighter’ Supply Vessel

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In recent years, Inge Gjelsten has been Captain on board several newbuilds: “’Blue Fighter’ is the best of them by far,” he states. He is soon to retire, and concludes: “If I were a newly-educated captain planning for a career on a supply vessel in the North Sea, a vessel of this type would be my preferred choice.”

The medium-sized platform supply vessel ‘Blue Fighter’ of PX121 design from ULSTEIN was ordered based on trends in the North Sea market. After only days of operation in the spot market, ‘Blue Fighter’ entered a one-year contract, with an option for an additional year, with the American oil company Apache for work in the North Sea.

Remøy Shipping has technical and commercial management of the vessel and feedback on her seakeeping abilities is invariably positive.

Captain Gjelsten continues:

“All on board agree that this is a remarkably efficient and comfortable vessel in all weather conditions. Wind and seas have little impact on the vessel’s performance compared to conventional PSV s. We can compare performance directly when steaming on the same tracks to the oil fields: With the same weather conditions and 3-5 metres head sea within 30 degrees of the bow, our ship can easily and comfortably maintain a speed of 12-13 knots, while the other vessels have to reduce their speed to 7-8 knots. The higher speed is a result of the ‘X-BOW® effect’. Also, due to the position of the stabilisation tanks on board, ‘Blue Fighter’ operates extremely well when wind and seas approach from the side.”

Ulstein Verft delivered the vessel to Blue Ship Invest in January this year.

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UK: BP Places Order for 4 Platform Supply Vessels

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BP announced today it has ordered four new platform support vessels (PSV) to help deliver its long term business strategy in the North Sea. The vessels will be deployed to support its West of Shetland (WoS) and Norwegian operations and be delivered between the winter of 2013 and summer of 2014.

The purpose built and highly specified vessels have been designed to provide long term support to BP’s North Sea business and will provide the capabilities BP requires to deliver its strategy more efficiently and safely. The vessels will have oil spill response capability and special tanks to transport fluids required for planned enhanced oil recovery (EOR) schemes.

Performance and safety will also be further improved by having dedicated crews on long term hire, minimising turnover and enhancing familiarity with BP’s processes.

Trevor Garlick, Regional President for BP North Sea, said, “Our long term commitment to the North Sea gives us the confidence to make major investments in vital support services. These new vessels will provide BP with a number of safety and commercial benefits, as well as allow for the greater deployment of technology. Improving our capability to recover more oil from our reservoirs is crucial to the future of the North Sea.”

The announcement is also positive news for the local economies in Scotland and Norway, as nearly 80% of the total project and operating costs will be spent there. The operating and maintenance work will be locally supplied and officers and crew will be UK and Norwegian qualified mariners. The vessels’ operators will support seafarer’s development by sponsoring personnel through their professional qualifications, including an Officer Cadet training scheme.

Mark Hardie, UK Logistics Manager for BP’s North Sea Region, said: “This is a significant investment in BP’s North Sea marine capability and will bring a number of business and local benefits from late 2013 onwards. The UK dedicated vessels will be based and maintained in Aberdeen.”

The arrangement is structured such that BP Shipping has contracted Hyundai to build the vessels and then hire them to BP Exploration Operating Company on a 15 year bareboat term charter. This project is consistent with BP’s strategy for marine offshore supply vessels that promotes vessel ownership where long term ‘life of field’ can be demonstrated.

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Norway: Ulstein Launches Blue Prosper PSV

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Norway’s Ulstein Verft yesterday succesfully launched a new PSV, Blue Prosper (Yard no. 294), the second of two medium-sized platform supply vessels (PSV) of the new PX121 design from ULSTEIN® for Blue Ship Invest.

The platform supply vessel was launched from the dock after the final paintwork had been carried out inside the dockhall. The vessel is due for delivery in August this year.

Ulstein Verft was contracted to build the two vessels for Blue Ship Invest, a shipping company in ULSTEIN, at the end of 2010, and the first vessel, M/V Blue Fighter was delivered in January 2011

The vessel is built with the X-BOW® hull line design, which is particularly well-suited for this type of vessel. The X-BOW offers efficiency over a wide draught range, which is important for PSVs as they frequently operate with varying loads. Moreover, the X-BOW has unique, advantageous qualities in terms of motion and propulsion efficiency in heavy seas. Both the hull and choice of propulsion system make the vessel particularly suited for North Sea and North Atlantic conditions. The vessel is equipped with a dynamic positioning system IMO Class II.

The ship has a length of 83.4 metres and a beam of 18 metres. It has a cargo deck of 875 square metres and a load capacity of 4200 tonnes (dwt). The ship meets the requirements of DNV’s Clean Design notation and is prepared for fire-fighting class Fi-Fi II. It has a maximum speed of circa 15 knots and modern accommodation for 24 persons.

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