Maersk Supply Service, a part of Danish shipping and offshore energy conglomerate Maersk Group, has entered into agreements with two yards to postpone delivery of a total of nine newbuildings.
The vessels in question include five anchor handling vessels, under construction at Kleven Yard in Norway, and four subsea support vessels, being built by China’s Cosco Dalian shipyard.
“Both MSS and the yards consider this the best possible solution given the current market situation,” Maersk Supply Service said.
The first Starfish anchor handling vessel, Maersk Master, was delivered in March this year, while vessel number two will be delivered in late June.
The next three Starfish ships from Kleven will be delivered in 2018, and the latest in the beginning of 2019. The four Stingray subsea support vessels at Dalian COSCO, none of which have been delivered to date, will all be slightly postponed with contract delivery dates planned from summer 2017 to spring 2018.
“It is our priority to optimize the utilization options for our new-buildings, and we are confident that the new delivery schedule will benefit the competitive edge of Maersk Supply Service,” Steen S. Karstensen, MSS CEO, said.