GE Power Conversion’s maritime business has awarded contracts to MES for the supply and installation of turnkey navigation, communication and internal communications packages on board 13 new drillships.
These vessels are in build as part of the current phase of the Brazilian oil and gas field exploration by Brazilian energy corporation Petrobras. The oil and gas giant is searching for hydrocarbons up to 300 kilometers (km) off the coast of Brazil, in rock formations up to 5 km below the seabed and in water depths of up to 2,000 meters. The pre-salt layer holds an estimated 10–16 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
GE provide very large integrated systems to shipbuilders to power, propel, navigate, position and control drillships and also power and control the drilling process itself.
The vessels comprise seven “Espadon 200” drillships to be built by Estaleiro Atlântico Sul (EAS) in Ipojuca, northeast Brazil. MES are providing the full Navigation package which comprises mainly Furuno equipment.
MES has been a navcomms partner to GE on several projects in the past including PSV’s in operation in the Gulf of Mexico and 2 Global 1200 pipelaying vessels. GE utilises the niche expertise of MES to provide a navigation equipment package which integrates into and around GE’s own propulsion and dynamic positioning systems.