OOS to build giant LNG semi-sub crane vessel

Dutch company OOS International Group has signed a memorandum of understanding with China Merchants Industry Holdings to design and construct a new semi-submersible crane vessel, claiming the vessel to be the largest of its kind in the world.

The 225m vessel named OOS Zeelandia will have two cranes each 112m long with a lifting capacity of 12,000 tonnes, according to a statement by OOS.

OOS says it signed the memorandum with CMIH, which is a unit of the Hong-Kong based China Merchants Group, back in July with the basic design of the vessel already in progress.

The crane vessel will be suitable for platform removal and installation in deep water.

“The ICE Class 1B LNG vessel can reach a high transit speed up to 15.4 knots and has a low fuel consumption due to its ship shaped asymmetric design,” the company said.

The vessel will have two storage tanks, one for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and one for marine diesel oil, OOS said without providing any additional information.

Chief executive Léon Overdulve said in the statement that this platform is the “world’s largest and most powerful LNG SSCV ever constructed.”

“These immense volumes that go beyond the capacity of our current fleet will be of great value to the decommissioning and subsea installation market based on client demands concerning the removal and installation of a high number of platforms,” Overdulve said.