AKOFS to partner with IKM Subsea for Equinor contract

Subsea services provider AKOFS Offshore has selected IKM Subsea to be its ROV partner for a contract with Equinor. 

AKOFS Offshore was awarded a five plus three year light well intervention (LWI) services contract on the Norwegian continental shelf with Equinor in June this year.

IKM Subsea’s contract with AKOFS includes building and mobilizing two Merlin UCVs onboard the AKOFS Seafarer vessel and supplying ROV services with personnel and onshore support for the duration of the contract, which is worth about 400 million NOK ($47.2M).

“We see IKM Subsea as an innovative and solution oriented service provider with the backing of a well-qualified and experienced team,” says CEO Geir Sjøberg at AKOFS.

Managing Director at IKM Subsea, Ben Pollard, said: “IKM Subsea have worked proactively together with AKOFS to create the best possible synergies for both companies. Considering the challenging times the industry is going through it makes me especially proud to be commissioning the new build of two state of the art ROV systems for this contract. Thus securing work both for our land and offshore staff and strengthening our company overall.”

The ROVs will be built by IKM Subsea’s sister company, IKM Technology at Bryne, Norway, where both companies are headquartered. Delivery and mobilization of the ROVs to the vessel will be in mid-2019.

Hans Fjellanger, Business Development Director at IKM Subsea, commented: “We are proud and humble to be awarded this contract by AKOFS for ROV work on the NCS for the next five + three years. ”

AKOFS Offshore is owned by Norway’s Akastor and Japan’s MITSUI & CO., LTD and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd, which bought 25% of the shares each in AKOFS from Akastor earlier this year.