Tangaroa Gets Multi-Million Dollar Upgrade

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MEDIA STATEMENT

17 August 2009

Major Investment In Ocean Research Capability - Tangaroa Gets Multi-Million Dollar Upgrade

NIWA is to install a Dynamic Positioning System in the Tangaroa, boosting the ship's versatility and maintaining its position as one of the most capable scientific research vessels in the Southern Hemisphere.

The installation of the DP system and associated maintenance and upgrading work on the ship is an investment of almost $20 million - making it one of the most significant investments NIWA has ever made in infrastructure. Some of the components will have to be made offshore, but most of the upgrade work will be carried out by New Zealand companies.

NIWA Chief Executive John Morgan says this upgrade is also one of the most significant investments in research, science, and technology in New Zealand in recent years.

"It is great to get the support of the Government as NIWA's shareholder for such extensive investment in ocean science research capability."

An agreement was signed in Whangarei last week between NIWA and the four companies carrying out the first stage of upgrading work.

Mr Morgan says he was proud and happy to announce that the first stage of the upgrade work would be carried out in Whangarei. It is expected to take about five weeks to complete. The next stage will be in the middle of next year when the vessel will be laid up for several months, including about four weeks in drydock. The final commissioning of the system will be done by 1 October 2010.

Mr Morgan says there are currently no New Zealand vessels with such a highly-advanced (DP2) dynamic positioning capability.

In the future, ocean researchers and other users of NIWA vessels will increasingly want to use equipment that currently cannot be deployed from Tangaroa, he says. Access to a vessel with dynamic positioning will significantly advance New Zealand's ocean sciences and boost NIWA's opportunities to support oil, gas, and mineral exploration within New Zealand and further afield.

Tangaroa is very heavily booked this year and will be spending nearly 300 days at sea.

Dynamic positioning is a computer-controlled propulsion system to automatically maintain a vessel on a chosen position by using its propellers and thrusters, countering strong effects of water, wind, and other environmental forces.

The system will allow Tangaroa to stay in one place (within a few metres), or, if required, move unerringly along a path, improving its ability to deploy or operate increasingly-precise scientific, fishing, or mining equipment, such as seabed samplers, soil and rock testing equipment and seabed drill rigs, and remotely operated vehicles.

For many marine operations, mainly the oil and gas industry, but also for the underwater construction industry and to support marine science research, the ability for the vessel to remain on station is of paramount importance and there is a strong demand for vessels with this capability.

For instance, remotely operated vehicles are extensively used for marine science and underwater inspection of oil and gas platforms and pipelines. These vehicles often "fly" on their umbilicals around the platforms and pipelines and there is potential for substantial damage if the vessel drifts or is blown off location. Similar damage can occur when equipment needs to operate on the seabed for prolonged periods.

The DP system also provides Tangaroa with an alternative propulsion system, which will make the vessel safer to operate, particularly in high-risk areas such as the Southern Ocean and Antarctica.

The life of a vessel is often determined by its technical obsolescence, and with the installation of the DP system, Tangaroa's will be extended to at least 40 years, 10 more than envisaged when it was built in 1991.

ENDS

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