Saipem has hired four platform supply vessels to provide pipehaul support for Equinor’s Irpa development offshore Norway.
The vessels have been fixed for a firm period of 60 days each, with further extension options available.
OSV owner Tidewater has bagged two of the contracts for the 2009-built Troms Castor and 2012-built Troms Sirius, while Singapore-based OSV owner Britoil and Norway’s Hoyland Offshore secured fixtures for the 2017-built BOS Patience and 2002-built Sar Mariner, respectively.
The Irpa gas field, formerly known as Asterix, is located 340 km west of Bodø in the Vøring Basin in the Norwegian Sea and 80 km west of the Aasta Hansteen field.
Saipem won the contract for the field’s pipeline project in 2023 and designated its flagship vessel Castorone for the work. The PSV quartet is scheduled to provide support to Saipem’s 325-m-long pipelayer from mid-April.
