Otto Marine sells AHTS vessel for $100m
Monday, December 29 2014 - 01:16 AM WIB
Otto Marine Limited, a leading offshore chartering group, which owns and operates more than 60 offshore support vessels globally, and also engaged in specialized shipbuilding, repair and conversion of offshore support vessels (OSV), said that its shipyard division has sold an Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessel (AHTS) to a renowned unrelated third party for US$100 million.
DNV classed and Norwegian-designed, the VS491 21,000bhp AHTS is a hybrid propulsion diesel electric driven vessel with dynamic positioning 2 (DP2) technology. It measures 91.5m in length and 22.5m wide and has a bollard pull of 240 to 260 tons. The vessel can also operate and handle large rigs in the ultra-deepwater region including the harshest environments of the North Sea region, the company said in a press statement obtained Monday.
?This AHTS is the 4th and final of the VS491 series the group has built in this batch. It is currently under construction at Otto Marine?s shipyard in Batam, Indonesia, and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2015,? the statement said.
GO Offshore (L) Private Limited, a subsidiary of the group, will charter the vessel for 8 years upon the completion of the vessel, it added.
The company said the $100million transaction is expected to have a positive contribution to the consolidated net tangible assets per share and earnings per share of the group for the financial year ending 31 December 2014.
Commenting on the sale of Vessel, Michael See, group Executive Director said: ?While the OSV market turned increasingly competitive given the recent regional developments and the instability of oil prices, the sale of the AHTS vessel and recent delivery of a subsea IMR vessel, once again, demonstrated our shipyard capability in shipbuilding and conversion of larger and complex OSVs, as well as our reputation among customers. The Group has continued to fortify our position as a leading OSV charterer in Indonesia, Australia, Mexico, Africa and expanding, while shipyard continue to remain as an integral part of its main offshore chartering business. The shipyard has been constantly securing repairs and fabrication jobs and generated a stable income stream, and thus strengthening the overall financial position of the Group.?
In addition to the sale and leaseback of the AHTS and the recently delivered Subsea and IMR (Inspection, Maintenance and Repair) vessel currently deployed in Australia, the group will be delivering four AHTS vessels to a renowned unrelated third party Indonesia customer in the next two months.
The group?s net order book stood at approximately US$500 million as at 30 September 2014.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak