Teekay orders two more shuttle tankers from Samsung Heavy

Teekay Offshore Partners has declared options with Samsung Heavy Industries for the construction of two, Suezmax-sized, DP2 shuttle tanker newbuildings for a total cost of approximately $265 million.

These newbuildings will be constructed based on the partnership’s new Shuttle Spirit design which incorporates technologies to increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions, including LNG propulsion technology, Teekay said on Tuesday. Upon delivery in 2020, the vessels will join Teekay Offshore’s Contract of Affreightment (CoA) fleet in the North Sea.

Teekay recently formed a separate shuttle tanker subsidiary, called Teekay Shuttle Tankers, into which it will transfer all of its shuttle tanker business. In early August, Teekay announced it had entered into conditional shipbuilding contracts with Samsung Heavy to construct two Suezmax DP2 shuttle tanker newbuildings with options to order up to two additional vessels. The first two shuttle tankers are scheduled for delivery in 2019 and 2020 and the option for another two units has now been exercised.

“This is another important milestone for Teekay Offshore’s shuttle tanker franchise since it further strengthens our position as the leading provider of CoA shuttle tanker services in the North Sea,” commented Ingvild Sæther, President and CEO of Teekay Offshore Group Ltd.

Sæther continued, “What makes me particularly proud is that these newbuildings, as well as the two shuttle tankers ordered in July 2017 to service Statoil’s needs in the North Sea, will set new standards for both fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.”

To remind, the first two vessels will provide shuttle tanker services in the North Sea under the Partnership’s existing Master Agreement with Statoil and will free up required vessel capacity to service Teekay Offshore’s CoA fleet in the North Sea.

Also, Teekay in late August held a triple naming ceremony for its three new shuttle tankers at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea. These three units will be operating at Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose and Hebron offshore oil fields located in St. John’s, Newfoundland & Labrador. The first of these vessels was delivered in late October and the second one was delivered in early November. The third tanker is expected to be delivered in early 2018.

Offshore Energy Today Staff