China’s Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co (ZPMC) will take legal action over a cancelled shipbuilding contract it had with UK oilfield services supplier Petrofac.
To remind, Petrofac on October 9, 2015 said it had terminated the contract with ZPMC for the construction of its JSD 6000 deepwater multi-purpose offshore vessel.
Petrofac then said the contract had been suspended due to issues with ZPMC’s performance in related to the construction of the proprietary design Petrofac JSD 6000.
In response, ZPMC said it was regrettable that Petrofac unilaterally terminated the contract.
“ZPMC will actively take all legal measures to defend its legitimate rights and interests, and will pursue the liability borne by Petrofac,” the Chinese company said in a statement.
ZPMC did not comment on Petrofac’s allegations that there had been issues with the shipbuilder’s performance, but said : “Analysts believe that the true reasons of more and more contract terminations arising are mainly caused by low oil & gas price which lead to offshore global market downturn.”
As for the vessel in question, Petrofac JSD 6000, it was ordered in January 2014 and scheduled for delivery in 2017. It is based on a design by Ulstein Sea of Solutions, which integrates the J-Lay, S-Lay and derrick functions.
Offshore Energy Today Staff