The Iremis Da Vinci docked in the Port of Mossel Bay for a crew change, to replenish stock and load material, among which was 80 concrete 'mattresses' used to secure the underwater pipelines on the Ikwezi project.
The vessel carries both marine and project crew and 32 crew changed over on this stop, said Shirley Schmidt of Afrishore, the sub-agent for the vessel. Mossel Bay is the port of preference, as it is a mere six hours from the FO Field while Cape Town is 26 hours away. Crew changes normally takes place every two weeks and crew stay over in Mossel Bay establishments before and after the changes.
The vessel usually carries 108 crew among whom are the three project engineers.
One of the PetroSA project engineers, Lulama Khumalo took the stakeholders on a very informative tour of the vessel and explained the various sections in great detail. The tour followed a sumptuous lunch that the visitors shared with the crew.
The Diving Support Vessel, Iremis Da Vinci (DSV IDV), is a dive and Remotely Operated Vehicle support vessel, featuring a state-of-the-art 18-man saturation diving system and two diving bells. A helipad on board enables crew changes while at sea.
After a successful phase one sub sea installation project by Offshore Construction Vessel, Normand Installer (OCV NI) ended in February 2013, PetroSA secured the services of another vessel to continue with phase two sub sea installation campaign for Project Ikhwezi.
The diving system is rated to 300m and includes twin 3-man Diving Bells with port and starboard orientation, as well as two 18-man Self-propelled Hyperbaric Lifeboats. It also features a special separate forecastle deck with dedicated control room below on shelter deck for ROV deployment and operation.
The Iremis Da Vinci mobilised for project Ikhwezi in Cape Town harbour on 28 March in preparation for her campaign. Her trip number one scope of work included sailing to F-O field for Survey spread calibration and site survey of the five sub sea structures locations – NTIF, STIF, NMS, SMS and SSIV; position marking of the structures by means of sandbags (excluding STIF & SMS); and Flexible flowlines (2 off 6" jumpers) relocation from NMS target box.
The Diving Support Vessel, Iremis Da Vinci (DSV IDV), is a Dive and Remotely Operated Vehicle support vessel, featuring a state-of-the-art 18-man saturation diving system. It was on its first ever visit to Mossel Bay this past week to replenish stock and change crew. Top left: Tshifhiwa Matshusa, one of the PetroSA Project Engineers who joined the stakeholders on their visit of the DSV Iremis Da Vinci. Top middle: Koos Viljoen, PetroSA Engineer; Mike Graham, OPM; Lulama Khumalo, PetroSA Project
