Offshore Vessel

Taken at Leith Docks on a very bright but cold day.

The Normand Pioneer came to the attention of the world?s media in August 2000 when it was used to transport diving equipment to the Barents Sea to assist attempts to reach the Russian submarine, the Kursk. The Normand Pioneer also represents a pioneering design, combining a wide range of capabilities in a 95m-long and 24m-wide vessel.

DESIGN
The new UT742 design used for the Normand Pioneer incorporated the owner?s requirements for a multifunctional offshore vessel capable of trenching, flexible pipe-laying, towing and anchor handling. The design has given the vessel roughly 280t bollard pull. The working deck area is almost 1,000m² and can carry about 3,500t with its centre of gravity 1m above the deck out of a total of 5,300dwt. Due to this, up to 2,500t of top side equipment for trenching, pipelaying and other subsea or drilling work can be installed.