Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has signed a contract for the supply of two platform supply vessels (PSVs) to Tidewater, Inc., the world's leading offshore service provider to the petroleum industry. The PSVs will be used to assisting offshore drilling platforms.
The two units will be produced at Fincantieri's Sturgeon Bay, Winsconsin, US facility are expected to be delivered by the end of 2012 and 2013 respectively.
The ships will be 303 feet long, 62 feet wide and their diesel-electric hybrid engines will allow them to reach a maximum speed of 14 knots. They are to be certified by the American Bureau of Shipping, as design will follow the most strict regulations in the scope of fire prevention and reduction of environmental impact.
Fincantieri CEO Giuseppe Bono commented, "The contract we have been awarded confirms the skills of our American shipyards not only in the military field, but also in the civil field."
On the military side, Fincantieri Marine Group, subsidiary of the Italian parent company, has already reached agreement for the $4 billion supply of 10 Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) to the US Navy, two oceanographic research ships to Fairbanks University (Alaska) and NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), and 105 response boat-medium (RB-M) to the US Coast Guard.
Fincantieri has also reached a cooperation agreement with aerospace giant Boeing aimed at winning the race for a $4 billion contract for the construction of a whole new hovercraft fleet for the US Army consisting of 80 units.