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In-depth | CONVERSION


Skagerrak puts to sea after major conversion and upgrade project


Cammell Laird has completed the conversion and upgrade of Nexans Skaggerak, a pipelaying vessel that is due to start work on a project in the North Sea.


Skagerrak, with the completion of a major € 8 million conversion and upgrade project at the Cammell Laird Shiprepairers and Shipbuilders Limited (CLSSL) dockyard in Birkenhead near Liverpool. Te two month project increased the cable layer’s ability to carry out larger scale power cable and umbilical installation projects, extended her service life by around 15 years and increased operational autonomy while at sea. A major element in the project was


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the insertion of a new 12.5m long pre-fabricated hull section between the superstructure and the turntable that has increased the ship’s overall length to 112.25m. An additional accommodation and crew recreation module was also installed, taking the total number of single cabins onboard to 60, together with a new work deck, complete with cable-handling equipment that has increased on the on-deck storage capacity to around 2000m2


, from 900m2 before. Te upgrade


further increased the ship’s deadweight from 7886tonnes to 9373tonnes and increased the cable carrying capacity from 6000tonnes to 7000tonnes. The yard also upgraded craneage


through the fitting of three new 5tonne Dreggen deck cranes; increased fuel and water reserve capacity, reducing the need for bunker fuel stops in transit; and made adjustments to provide 0.8m less draſt midship, so that the vessel can operate closer to shore. CLSSL fabricated over 2000tonnes of steel for the project, including the 500tonnes midship section and 113tonne accommodation block. Te work carried out also involved converting two existing fuel/oil tanks to water ballast tanks, installing double side and double bottom protection in two of the


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The Nexans Skagerrak project involved the fitting of a new 12.5m long section between the superstructure and turntable.


fuel/oil tanks and subdividing tanks to achieve improved damage stability. Te repair deck was extended, a new cable pickup arm support and mast was fitted, lifesaving equipment added and a new sewage treatment and fresh water making plant was installed. Having leſt the yard in March this year,


the first project for the Nexans Skagerrak will be the BP Valhall PFS (power from shore) project in the North Sea. This involves the laying of 292km of HVDC


he Nexans group has further extended the subsea cable laying capabilities of the Nexans


The Nexans Skagerrak before the conversion, which took place in the first quarter of 2010.


(high voltage direct current) cable, as well as a separate optical fibre cable, to provide the Valhall offshore platform with power generated onshore in Norway. CLSSL managing director, Linton


Roberts, said the yard had ‘pulled out all the stops’ to complete the fast track conversion and upgrade contract in just two months. Te yard was selected for the project as it had the required capacity available to suit Nexans programme and was competitive on price and conditions. Furthermore, the location of the yard fitted in well with the ship’s route to its next cable laying project in the North Sea. Skagerrak was originally built in 1976


for the Norway-Denmark Skagerrak cable link. Initially she was built as a barge, but was converted in 1981 to become a self-propelled ship. Te vessel was bought by Nexans in 2006 and is now considered by the company as a strategically important investment. SRCT


Shiprepair and Conversion Technology 2nd Quarter 2009


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