Bibby Offshore Hires CSV Olympic ARES

Aberdeen-based subsea installation contractor Bibby Offshore has signed a charter agreement for construction support vessel (CSV), the Olympic ARES.

The agreement with Olympic Shipping will initially be a seasonal charter beginning at the end of Q1 2014 with options to extend.

The vessel will be mobilised with ROV’s from Bibby Offshore’s sister company Bibby Remote Intervention Limited and the companies together with Olympic Shipping shall jointly market the vessel from when it arrives in Aberdeen this month.

Andrew Duncan, president and managing director of Bibby Subsea said: “Adding to our fleet increases our offering to the IRM and construction market, which is an important growth area for the business. We have recently secured a number of major contracts in these areas and the Olympic ARES will be used to execute large and complex projects in the UKCS, Denmark and elsewhere in the North sea, whilst offering our clients greater choice and availability.

“The Olympic ARES is a superior vessel with excellent specifications, including a 250 tonne heave compensated crane for subsea use and 1300m2 of clear back deck space.”

Bjorn Kvalsund, executive vice president for Olympic Shipping said: “We are very pleased to begin this relationship with Bibby Offshore and to have signed this first charter agreement with them. The ROV Services Agreement with sister company Bibby Remote Intervention will allow us to both take advantages of additional opportunities together and we hope to grow and expand this working relationship in the future.”

Bibby Offshore with new sister company Bibby Remote Intervention Limited (BRIL), has grown from 10 employees in 2003 to now employing more than 1,300 people onshore and offshore worldwide, with offices in Aberdeen, Liverpool, Singapore, Trinidad and Houston. The company has an international fleet of six subsea support vessels and 13 Remote Operating Vehicles (ROV) and will continue to add to their fleet to meet demand.