NOVA SCOTIA CANADA: THE NEXT PLAY

East Coast supply and service delivers

Companies prove worth on Sable

Irving’s shipbuilding’s conversion of a fishing trawler into a seismic vessel is just the latest project for the Halifax-based shipyard. The contract to “jumbo-ize” and convert the trawler “SCAN Stigandi” into a seismic vessel for owners NeptuneSeismic AS of Fosnavaag, Norway, is another example of a Nova Scotia support company’s capability, flexibility and recognized skills. Irving has a long history, with company locations at the Halifax Shipyard, the Woodside facility across the harbour in Dartmouth, the Pictou Shipyard, as well as Shelburne Ship Repair. Before embarking on a long-term time charter with SCAN Geophysical ASA., the vessel will be fitted with a helideck, and a charterer-supplied state-of-the-art streamer and gun deck for both 2D and 3D seismic operations.

Irving Shipbuilding says the recent fabrication of the South Venture P-60 Deck for Exxon-Mobil’s Sable Project at the Woodside facility was particularly gratifying for the company. The project recorded 1.4 million person hours of safe work. “It was the type of project that was so satisfying to ExxonMobil that they gave us an award-special recognition to the men and women for their safety and productivity performance. So we know we can do it for the best,” said J. D. Irving.

Irving’s Tim Brownlow adds that recent offshore work also includes the construction of four World Class Anchor Handling Offshore Supply Vessels and upgrade work to Global Santa Fe’s semi-submersible, The Grand Banks Explorer, at their Woodside facility. The Grand Banks Explorer was originally called the Bow Drill III and was built at an Irving facility.

Irving Shipbuilding is now bidding on work for EnCana’s Deep Panuke Project. “We are very hopeful we will win some of this work for our Woodside facility,” says Brownlow.

“We had a contract a few years ago with the Eirik Raude, which was the largest fifth generation semi-submersible in the world. We were able to do the job in Halifax. We had 2,000 people on that job each day. It was a very big project for us,” says Brownlow.

 “If you come here to do a project, you don’t have to worry about your technical needs, there is a supply and service chain already set up,” says Department of Energy Director of Business & Technology Bernie MacDonald.

Engineers and engineering companies have completed environmental assessments, oceanographic surveys, drilling and other engineering jobs.

ACCENT engineering was an amalgamation of several companies that teamed up to qualify to bid, and then do work on, the Sable Offshore Energy Project. Peter Rent, who heads ACCENT, says a major contract on SOEP was the fractionation plant in Point Tupper, which involved civil structural work, plant siting, mechanical piping and electrical instrumentation.

Rent says, “The caliber of the services provided by Nova Scotia engineers, in particular, is equal to anything you can find anywhere in the world in terms of the expertise and qualifications of the person who’s doing the work. It’s really second to none.”