Singapore-based offshore specialist Nordic Maritime has been awarded a USD23.5 million contract to provide 3D marine seismic data acquisition and processing services off the coast of Andhra Pradesh, India, to Cairn India Limited, starting later this month.
The contract will see Nordic Maritime collaborate with SCF Geo of Russia and will feature that group’s seismic survey vessel Vyacheslav Tikhonov.
The Vyacheslav Tikhonov will survey approximately 1,000 sq km of ocean bed. The project will also include the acquisition of gravity and magnetic data alongside the seismic data near Nizamapatnam Bay.
The Vyacheslav Tikhonov was built in 2011 and is operated by SCF GEO, based in St Petersburg. To support the 3D data acquisition programme, Nordic and SCF Geo will charter and mobilise a supply ship and 10 chase vessels locally from Indian owners.
The Vyacheslav Tikhonovis an 8-streamer state of the art seismic survey vessel, based on the X-bow Ulstein design from Norway.
Nordic Maritime confirmed that the project has a starting date of March 15, and will last three months, so is due to complete by the middle of June. The vessel is due to depart from the Port of Kakinada. She will be covering a total area of 1,023 sq km during the project.
Nordic Maritime’s Chief Executive Officer, Kjell Gauksheim said: “This award from Cairn Energy for work offshore India is naturally exciting for Nordic and our partners. We are pleased to be entrusted with it and we will perform as always to our established high standards. We believe there are more opportunities like this in the region and we are open to more contracts of this sort in future.”
Press Release, March 12, 2014