Naming and launching of ‘Seven Pacific’

The Seven Pacific is an Ice-class pipe-laying and construction vessel, suitable for unrestricted operation worldwide. It is capable of installing flexible pipes and umbilicals in water up to 3,000m deep.

The keel was laid on 15 July, 2009, and the finished vessel is scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of this year. This is the fourth vessel contracted by Subsea 7 to the IHC Merwede Offshore & Marine division, the others being: the Seven Oceans (pipeplaying); the Seven Seas (pipelaying and construction); and the Seven Atlantic (dive support).

The vessel’s pipelaying equipment has a tension capacity of 260 tonnes and a 2,500-tonne storage capacity for flexible pipe on the underdeck carousels. It also has a built-in deepwater dual 3,000m-rated work-class ROV spread and a comprehensive survey system. A large deck area of 1,700m2 has been incorporated for equipment and reel storage.

The ship has a 6.6kV integrated electric power generation system and is propelled by triple electric motor-driven azimuth thrusters with fixed pitch propellers in nozzles at the stern. One retractable azimuth thruster and two transverse thrusters have also been installed to the forepart of the newbuilding. Huisman Equipment designed and built the 260-tonne vertical lay system, twin underdeck carousels and the 250-tonne heave-compensated knuckle boom crane.