PGS names the most sophisticated seismic vessel in the industry
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
The most sophisticated vessel in the seismic industry, the 22-streamer Ramform Sterling was named today at the yard in Tomrefjord, Norway. The new vessel, a sister ship of Ramform Sovereign is 16 meters longer than the previous class Ramforms. It has significantly higher acquisition and transit speed, 25 percent longer endurance, and 60 percent higher production capacity compared to the previous Ramform class. The Ramform Sterling is the most powerful seismic ship in the world, with a power plant supplying 30 000 horsepower.
The vessel class features many new innovations; including the world's first roll compensated helideck, steerable sources, dual workboat capacity and unique gear handling systems. The range of technologies employed is the new benchmark for 3D, 4D and wide azimuth acquisition - in terms of productivity, efficiency, safety and data quality.
Jon Erik Reinhardsen, President and CEO of PGS states in a comment: "This on-time delivery is an important milestone to PGS, as we are combining the most sophisticated technology in the business, with the newest vessel in the industry. Ramform Sterling is adding another of the world's most cost effective vessels to our fleet, giving PGS a clear competitive edge in the market."
Ramform Sterling has a capacity of 22 streamers at 8 km length. The 400 tons of highly sensitive electronic equipment deployed over an area equivalent to 830 soccer pitches. The power station on Ramform Sterling generates up to 30 000 horsepower. When collecting seismic data, the Ramform Sterling generates around 160 tons of thrust, equivalent to two Boeing 747 aircraft at takeoff. Ramform Sterling contains 53 cabins, all with separate bathrooms.
Rune Eng, Group President Marine, states: "We are very excited at the prospect of getting another Ramform S-Class into operations. There has been enormous interest amongst our client base for the vessel, and despite the general slowdown in the seismic market we register that interest for the high productivity, efficiency and safety of the Ramforms. Ramform Sterling already has several good projects lined up throughout the year. We expect to set more industry records for operational efficiency. Once again, this is a fantastic addition to the fleet."
The History of the Ramform
Since the first Ramform seismic vessel sailed out of the yard in May 1995 its delta shaped design has become a trademark for PGS, a symbol of innovation and an icon for our industry. These ships have smashed about every seismic production record and revolutionized the marine seismic industry. In 1995 3D seismic was an art, today it is an industry. Thanks to the 40 meter broad beam and ultra-stable hull construction PGS was able to produce first more and more efficient seismic with ultra wide streamer tows, then better and better resolution data with the introduction high density (HD3D) seismic and ever higher streamer counts.
The first Ramform vessel, the "Marjata", was a surveillance ship designed for the Norwegian navy. PGS spotted the potential of the vessel, quickly recognizing that the design silent operations and wide stern made her perfect for seismic acquisition where it is desired to have as little noise as possible from the vessel itself during data acquisition. The unique broad stern design enables quick and safe deployment and retrieval of massive volumes of towed seismic equipment.
The Ramform Explorer launched in 1995, was followed by the Ramform Challenger in 1996, the four V-class vessels Ramforms Valiant and Viking in 1998, Ramform Victory and Vanguard in 1999.
The PGS Ramform vessels were the first to tow, eight, ten, twelve, fourteen, sixteen and seventeen streamers. The PGS Ramform vessels remain the only seismic vessels capable of towing more than twelve streamers, and the only seismic vessels routinely towing twelve streamers. This streamer towing capability provides PGS with unmatched survey flexibilities, efficiency and operational safety.
About PSG
Petroleum Geo-Services is a focused geophysical company providing a broad range of seismic and reservoir services, including acquisition, processing, interpretation, and field evaluation. The company also possesses the world's most extensive multi-client data library. PGS operates on a worldwide basis with headquarters at Lysaker, Norway.
Source: PGS
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