Technip officially named its latest new state-of-the art pipelay vessel on Friday at Florø, Norway. During the ceremony held at Westcon's Yard, the Deep Energy was named by the vessel's godmother, Patricia Pilenko, wife of Thierry Pilenko, Technip's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

Technip, Westcon and their suppliers have worked in close cooperation since the Deep Energy's arrival in Florø, in October 2011, and sea trials have recently been successfully completed after final outfitting and commissioning.

The Deep Energy is the fastest and one of the largest and most capable pipelay vessels ever built in our industry. She supports subsea developments in shallow to ultra-deep waters of up to 3,000 meters. Specifically designed to operate in the North Sea, the Atlantic basin and intercontinental projects, her service speed of 19.5 knots enables fast transit between work sites, increasing vessel availability for clients.

The Deep Energy is a DP class 3 vessel primarily designed to handle subsea installation of reeled rigid pipe of up to 18” outer diameter. She has a normal operating dynamic top tension of 450 tons and is equipped with a highly efficient PLET(1) handling system. She is also capable of installing flexible products, umbilicals(2), steel tube umbilicals and a variety of mid-line and end structures.

Thierry Pilenko, Technip's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented: "The Deep Energy follows in the proud tradition of Technip's industry leading vessels, the Deep Blue and the Apache II. Technip is proud to introduce another valuable asset to its fleet as the performance of this new pipelay vessel will add further capabilities to the wide integrated range of services we already offer our clients and their projects."

Gustav Johan Nydal, Westcon's Managing Director, declared: “We are delighted to announce that the Deep Energy is ready for delivery. Together with our suppliers and thanks to a good cooperation with Technip, our shipyard has succeeded in completing one of the most advanced pipe laying vessels in the world. This achievement proves Westcon Shipyard Florø's capabilities and distinguishes Westcon in delivering special purpose vessel with sophisticated design.”

(1) PLET: pipeline end termination, subsea structure to connect rigid flowline and flexible riser.

(2) Umbilical: an assembly of steel tubes and/or hydraulic hoses which can also include electrical cables or optic fibres used to control subsea structures from a platform or a vessel.

Technip is a world leader in project management, engineering and construction for the energy industry.

From the deepest Subsea oil & gas developments to the largest and most complex Offshore and Onshore infrastructures, our 36,500 people are constantly offering the best solutions and most innovative technologies to meet the world's energy challenges.

Present in 48 countries, Technip has state-of-the-art industrial assets on all continents and operates a fleet of specialized vessels for pipeline installation and subsea construction.