June 2011 page 3 Gladstone operation in full swing page 7 SMIT Salvage responds to vessel groundings page 6 SMIT Terminals: energy demand drives forward new projects page 10 ‘Taklift 4’ installs Egyptian platform’s topside page 4 Harbour Towage: the pathfinder in “focus areas” page 12 Marine project contracting: exploiting fresh opportunities More SMIT transports wind turbine foundations for the new Lincs offshore wind farm in UK waters. Integration: the pace quickens 2 New orders for anchor handlers and tugs 3 SMIT’s total commitment to the brazilian market 5 New vessels join the URS fleet 5 Transport fleet supports Lincs windfarm construction 9 Singapore-based vessels support major wreck removal 11 New generation sheerleg will have 5,000 tonnes lift capacity 11 Successful topside installation Asian Lift 11 SMIT Subsea installs protection for dutch shelf subsea wells 12 SMIT Amandla Marine pushes for further growth in 2011 13 Bringing together operations and engineering 14 A plan for integration and expansion 15 Be prepared! Reducing the piracy threat 16 Royal Naming ceremony ‘Smit Panther’ 16 SMIT.COM
9
Embed
June 2011 - SMIT Salvage | Towage · June 2011 page 3 Gladstone operation ... 3211 ASD tug with 68 tonnes bollard pull. The ... Some of the requirement for addi-tional tugs relates
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
June
201
1
page 3
Gladstone operation in full swing
page 7SMIT Salvage responds to
vessel groundings
page 6SMIT Terminals: energy demand
drives forward new projects
page 10‘Taklift 4’ installs Egyptian
platform’s topside
page 4Harbour Towage: the pathfinder
in “focus areas”
page 12Marine project contracting:
exploiting fresh opportunities
More
SMIT transports wind turbine foundations for
the new Lincs offshore wind farm in UK waters.
Integration: the pace quickens 2
New orders for anchor handlers and tugs 3
SMIT’s total commitment to the brazilian market 5
New vessels join the URS fleet 5
Transport fleet supports Lincs windfarm construction 9
Singapore-based vessels support major wreck removal 11
New generation sheerleg will have 5,000 tonnes lift capacity 11
Successful topside installation Asian Lift 11
SMIT Subsea installs protection for dutch shelf subsea wells 12
SMIT Amandla Marine pushes for further growth in 2011 13
Bringing together operations and engineering 14
A plan for integration and expansion 15
Be prepared! Reducing the piracy threat 16
Royal Naming ceremony ‘Smit Panther’ 16
smit.com
Loek Kullberg gives a speech.
One of the five sponsor ladies cuts the ribbon during the official ceremony.
It is pleasing to report that we are making
good progress following the Boskalis SMIT
merger in March of last year. The pace of
integration is quickening. We have already
achieved synergies which exceed our initial
expectations.
The integration process is overseen by a
Steering Group, which leads working groups
from Boskalis and SMIT. Together, they con-
tinue to find significant market and cost syner-
gies. Their work will continue throughout this
year and during 2012.
Strong working partnerships have already
blossomed at the management, contracting
and operational levels. SMIT equipment, for
example, is at work at Rotterdam - Europoort’s
Maasvlakte 2 project, through the PUMA
Consortium. Meanwhile, Boskalis’ advanced
survey equipment and soil expertise have
found an important role in SMIT wreck removal
projects.
Integration will enhance our capacity to
deliver added value, a critical success factor
in a challenging market. We are optimistic for
the future, as Boskalis and SMIT both gener-
ate around 80 per cent of their business from
the ports and oil and gas sectors. The com-
mercial drivers in these areas look strong
for the medium and longer term. With this
in mind, both Boskalis and SMIT will ben-
efit from integration, as an integrated group
delivering enhanced added value is far better
positioned to prosper in a competitive global
environment.
SMIT enhances Boskalis by adding new opera-
tional capabilities and it will broaden the scope
of the offering, by developing fresh opportuni-
ties for contracting. Boskalis, in turn, provides
the expertise which allows SMIT to be more
comfortable with contracting risks. The trans-
port and heavy lift market is a case in point.
SMIT has excellent hardware and expertise but,
in the past, has tended to supply equipment
rather than become involved in lumpsum con-
tracting. Boskalis has a track record of tender-
ing for and executing major projects on a turn-
key basis. Through the vehicle of SMIT Marine
Projects we can utilise equipment and exper-
tise within a lumpsum contracting context.
There is also significant added value to be won
from the integration of our international net-
works. Without doubt, the major outcome will
be a substantial increase in the commercial
opportunities open to Boskalis SMIT.
We have to consider these events in the con-
text of the times. Over the last couple of years,
SMIT was successful with much improved com-
mercial performance and investments in new
equipment, especially in harbour towage. At
the same time, the assumption of contracting
risks was not on the agenda. This was a sound
strategy - at that time - given SMIT’s limited
experience of total package contracting and an
essentially benign commercial climate. Today,
however, we need a revised strategy, based
on added value and more project contracting.
There will be occasions, for example, when it
will be possible to combine the dredging and
wreck removal tasks within the scope of a main
contract. Here, the geographic strengths of
Boskalis SMIT offer great potential, with one
having the capacity to “introduce” the other,
opening the door to new harbour towage or
dredging business.
Performance 2010Markets were down in 2010, yet SMIT had
sufficient commercial vigour to make a good
contribution to Boskalis’ record results in its
centennial year. Boskalis SMIT worked together
with great enthusiasm and this positive out-
come provides hard evidence of real com-
mitment. Building on this promising start, we
recently adopted a new three-year Corporate
Business Plan - a platform for further progress
(see page 15).
Looking ahead, we see an improving picture
on the Harbour Towage front. Freight levels
are recovering, with traffic volumes on the
increase at strategic locations around the
world, from Rotterdam to Panama. Against
this background, SMIT’s Harbour Towage
Division performed well in 2010. Taken over-
all, this Division put in a good performance.
One recent highlight was the acquisition of
the remaining 50 per cent of the SMIT Rebras
joint venture. SMIT has been active in Brazil
since 2006, when the joint venture was first
established. Today, SMIT Rebras operates a tug
fleet of 18 ASD newbuildings at six ports in the
country.
In the Terminals sector, performance in 2010
was good across the range of long-term con-
tracts, although two contracts (in Pakistan and
Nigeria) were not renewed. In recent years, we
have seen relatively few new projects come
forward. In contrast, however, a series of new
oil and LNG facilities will open later this year
and in 2012, resulting in a very promising
outlook.
Boskalis provides terminal services via
SMIT Terminals and its 50 per cent stake in
Lamnalco. Since the Boskalis SMIT merger, we
have taken time to carefully examine the opti-
mum structure to go forward. We have made
good progress and now expect to make an
announcement on the intended integration
before the Summer.
Turning to Salvage, 2010 was a busy year,
despite a rather slow first half. Emergency
response was at a low level throughout the
year, but the wreck removal business was
strong. A major rig removal operation was
completed in the Gulf of Mexico and other
major projects were progressed in Indian
waters and off the Indonesian coast.
In the Transport and Heavy Lift arena, spot
contracts suffered from restricted maintenance
budgets and the postponement of new activi-
ties. In the Transport market, these effects were
especially marked in the North Sea region.
Elsewhere in the world, activity levels held up
well, with SMIT in a particularly strong position
in South Africa and Singapore.
OutlookWe see the key factors driving growth remain-
ing positive for the medium term. Energy and
commodity-related projects in South America,
Australia and Africa are of great significance.
We expect many projects in these regions to
come to the market over the next few years.
Frank Verhoeven
Chairman, SMIT
Group Director, Boskalis
IntegratIOn: the Pace quIckens
SMIT tugs are now assisting some of the
world’s largest bulk carriers, calling to load
coal and minerals at the Australian port of
Gladstone. This is a harbour towage break-
through for SMIT in Australia. Six tugs are
now operating at Gladstone.
There is now the prospect of providing an
additional six tugs, to serve the LNG vessels
which will be calling at Gladstone from 2014.
A decision on the ordering of new tugs is likely
to be taken over the coming 12 months.
The tugs required under the current contract
were on location at Gladstone by the end of
last year. They are operating under a five-year
exclusive harbour towage licence, secured by
competitive tender. There is an option in the
contract to extend by three years.
Five of the six tugs are Robert Allan 3070
ASD vessels rated at 70 tonnes bollard pull
(Firefighting Class 1, LNG/escort capable).
The sixth vessel, ‘Smit Leopard’, is a Damen
3211 ASD tug with 68 tonnes bollard pull. The
3070 vessels were built by Uzmar’s Izmit Yard
in Turkey. ‘Smit Leopard’ was built at Damen’s
Penglai Yard in China.
All six tugs are Australian-registered and
crewed, with Gladstone as their home port.
They were named at a ceremony at Gladstone’s
Auckland Point Berth 4 during March. The tugs
were lined up, bow to quay, for this ceremony.
Those attending were welcomed by local
resident Lindsay Johnson, representing the
Gooreng Gooreng and Byellee peoples.
The ceremony marked the culmination of
an unusual process - a competition for local
people, who were invited to propose names.
The winning names were: ‘Smit Koongo’
(a Byellee word meaning “place of water”),
‘Smit Yallarm’ (a Gooreng Gooreng word mean-
ing “place of shells”), ‘Smit
Awoonga’ (the name
of a large lake formed
by a nearby dam), ‘Smit
Tondoon’ (the name
of Gladstone’s original
dam and now the name
of a botanical gardens
preserving plants indig-
enous to the Port Curtis
region), and ‘Smit Kullaroo’
(meaning “road that leads to
water”).
The tugs were blessed by Gladstone Mission
to Seaman chaplains Father John McKim and
Trevor Phillips. ‘Smit Yallarm’ was named by
Mrs Patricia Brusasco, spouse of Gladstone
Ports Corporation Chairman Ian Brusasco.
Gladstone Mayor Gail Sellers named ‘Smit
Koongo’. Joanne Lutze, spouse of Captain
Mike Lutze, the Regional Harbourmaster,
named ‘Smit Kullaroo’. The ‘Smit
Tondoon ‘was named by Elizabeth
Zussino, spouse of Gladstone Ports
Chief Executive Leo Zussino. Judy
Reynolds, a Director of Gladstone
Ports Corporation, named the ‘Smit
Awoonga’. Helen Skippen also a
Director of the Ports Corporation,
named ‘Smit Leopard’.
The ceremony was attended by SMIT
Harbour Towage Managing Director
Loek Kullberg. He told those present
that the Gladstone contract was a
significant award for SMIT and that
the objective is to achieve more suc-
cess in Australia. He made reference
to the Gorgon LNG project. Here,
SMIT has put together proposals for
operations with a fleet of diesel-elec-
tric tugs of advanced design.
Gladstone, meanwhile, continues to
grow. It is one of Australia’s largest
coal ports. In terms of throughput,
it already ranks as Australia’s third largest port.
Throughput is forecast to increase from 76
million tonnes in 2008 to around 127 million
tonnes by 2013. In his address at the naming
ceremony, Gladstone Ports Chairman Ian
Brusasco said that at least 12 new tugs would
be needed at Gladstone over the next five to
10 years. Some of the requirement for addi-
tional tugs relates to the construction of exten-
sive LNG export facilities at Gladstone. There is
every prospect that Gladstone will develop as
the centre of one of the world’s busiest har-
bour towage operations.
gladstOne OPeratIOn In full swIng
New orders were placed in the third quar-
ter of 2010 for two new 100 tonnes bollard
pull anchor handlers, from the Chinese yard
of Guijiang Shipbuilding Co in Wuzhou.
The newbuilds will be fitted with Wärtsila
engines, and state-of-the-art winches from
Rolls Royce. The new vessels will join the
fleet in mid-2012 and will then work in the
Middle East and Far East regions.
Other recent new orders include six vessels
for SMIT Rebras in Brazil. These are 45 tonnes
bollard pull vessels, to be built to the Robert
Allen 2500 design. The orders were placed with
Keppel Singmarine in Brazil. These orders were
announced in April of this year and the first of
the newbuildings will be delivered in late 2012.
new Orders fOr anchOr handlers and tugs
Biographical notes: Frank VerhoevenFrank Verhoeven’s father was a tug Captain
who later became a project manager with
Boskalis. Frank obtained his Degree in Civil
Engineering from the University of Delft,
in the mid-1970s, and then joined Boskalis.
He became a Technical Staff Manager
in the 1980s, then assumed operational
responsibilities in the 1990s. By the end
of that decade he led Boskalis’ Offshore
Department. In the 2000-04 period, he was
General Director for Boskalis Netherlands
and, subsequently, a member of the Group
Management Team with specific responsi-
bilities for Europe. He is now Group Director
with special responsibility for SMIT.
smit.com3
tug magazine
Harbour Towage is one of the main pil-
lars for future investment under the new
Boskalis SMIT Corporate Business Plan.
Loek Kullberg, Managing Director of SMIT’s
Harbour Towage Division, says: “This core
activity is very important and the strategy
is very clear. We will concentrate on the
major engines of the world economy, while
moving away from smaller, fragmented
markets which are less valuable in a Group
context. The markets of interest include
Australia and Brazil. SMIT Harbour Towage
has a vital role to play, as it has such a pow-
erful track record as a pathfinder activity.
“This is particularly important at this time,
when we see the major ports of the world
picking up again after the downturn. Tonnage
levels are fast approaching the peak of 2008.
The number of movements is down but this is
explained by a substantial increase in vessel
size. Our strategy of increasing bollard pull
reflects this trend. Maersk’s recent order for
18,000 TEU class vessels is a sign of the times.”
In response to adoption of the new Business
Plan, the Harbour Towage Division is
prospecting for new acquisitions in the world’s
major ports. The “focus areas” are: Brazil,
Australia, South East Asia, the North West
European region, South and West Africa and
the Middle East.
Within this new perspective, the priorities
include the accelerated development of SMIT
Rebras in Brazil (now 100 per cent owned), the
long term, ground-breaking harbour towage
contract at Gladstone, Australia, and start-up
tug operations in Liberia.
At the same time, the concentration on
“focus areas” provides the background
to SMIT’s recent decision to dissolve its
Baltic harbour towage joint venture. The
partnership with Towmar, of Lithuania, at
Klaipeda and Ventspils, ends on July 1. Loek
Kullberg comments: “Essentially, we felt that
the prospects for growth in this area of the
Baltic were insufficient to justify continuing
investment. We had three tugs operating
within Towmar SMIT. The two 60 tonnes bollard
pull 2810s ‘Smit Trinidad’ and ‘Smit Dominica’
have already been redeployed to Brazil as
frontrunners, pending the arrival of recently
ordered vessels. In addition the ‘Smit Mersey’
will be redeployed to Liberia.
“Brazil is a powerful hub for future growth in the
Americas. We are making rapid progress in Brazil
and there are also important developments in
Panama, with the Balboa contract for four tugs
renewed for another five years.
new contracts in liberiaSMIT recently gained two significant contracts
in Liberia. In Monrovia, APMT (an A.P. Møller
Group company) has signed a five-year
contract for the two ASD tugs ‘Schelde’ 10
and 12. The contract, signed at the end of
last year, commenced in February. The two
tugs are assisting vessels calling at the port.
In addition, SMIT has mobilised two tugs
to Buchanan, a minerals export port some
60 miles south of Monrovia. This is a three-
year contract for the assistance of large
bulk carriers calling at Buchanan’s iron ore
terminal. The contract will be served by the
‘Smit Nida’ (redeployed from the Baltic) and
the ‘KST Sphere’. The client is Arcelor Mittal.
The contract commenced at the end of May.
SMIT has demonstrated its total commit-
ment to the Brazilian market with a decision
to acquire 100 per cent of the SMIT Rebras
harbour towage operation, now active in six
of the country’s main ports.
The agreement to purchase the balance of
50 per cent of the shares in this joint venture
was concluded in March. Loek Kullberg says:
“This acquisition gives us much greater
flexibility to manage and expand SMIT Rebras
and orientate it within the new Boskalis SMIT
strategy. We need to grow in this market at a
very vigorous rate.”
With this acquisition completed, the way is
open to commit more investment to the SMIT
Rebras business. As a result, SMIT recently
brought to a successful conclusion the
negotiations for another six (plus an option for
another six) newbuildings, to be constructed
in Brazil. These vessels are to be built by Keppel
Singmarine at a newly-acquired local facility in
Brazil.
The first tranche of the new orders consists
of six 45 tonnes bollard pull Robert Allan RA
2500-type tugs. The new tugs will be very
similar to the 12 x 45 tonnes bollard pull
newbuildings - built by Detroit Brasil - in
the large “foundation order” for SMIT Rebras
(which also included six 65 tonnes bollard pull
units).
Loek Kullberg says: “The new tugs are due for
delivery over the next 18-24 months. These
additions to the Brazilian fleet will allow us to
add more ports to our portfolio and further
increase market share in Brazil. We plan to put
two more tugs into Vitória and deploy units to
two more ports, bringing our total number of
operational centres to eight.”
Under Brazilian legislation, the signing of the
contract allows SMIT to make an early start
on expansion, by bringing in frontrunner
tugs from other locations around the world.
Six frontrunners will work in Brazilian waters.
The four units earmarked for transfer to
Brazilian waters, at the time of writing, are
the ‘Smit Taboguilla’ and ‘Smit Manzamillo’
ex-Panama, together with the 2810 tugs/ 60
tonnes BP, ‘Smit Montserrat’ and the ‘Smit
Cayman’ (ex-Tangguh Indonesia). They will
arrive in Brazil in June and July.
tug orders signed The contract for the new tugs was signed at
SMIT’s headquarters in Rotterdam on April 20.
These tugs are ASD units with Caterpillar
engines and generators and Schottel pro-
pulsion. They will be constructed at Keppel
Singmarine’s Brazilian yard at Navegantes,
Santa Catarina State.
Loek Kullberg says: “Decisions on the six
options will be taken at the time of delivery of
the first tug in the series. The first of the new-