ABL secures DNV design approval

The design concept was created under a master service agreement with offshore marine contractor Maridive and Oil Services and focuses on maintaining DP redundancy principles, minimising transfer interruption time, preventing fault propagation between redundant electrical groups and enhancing capability following failures.

“This DNV approval confirms that advanced engineering solutions can bridge the gap between compliance and operational robustness,” said Juan Antonio Vieiros Cañal, DP lead for the Middle East at ABL.

“As the industry increasingly focuses on DP upgrades and retrofits, structured electrical design concepts like this will play a key role in improving both technical resilience and charterer confidence.”

DP2 vessels configured with two main propellers and a single stern thruster can face operational challenges during thruster changeover. Although such arrangements can meet class requirements, conventional automatic changeover processes may introduce short-term risks to electrical system stability during the transfer and restart phases.

This discrepancy can lead to situations where vessels remain technically compliant but still raise operational concerns for charterers assessing system resilience.

To tackle this, ABL’s engineering team in Egypt developed a fast-response stern thruster changeover philosophy intended to reduce these risks while maintaining redundancy within the vessel’s DP system.

Tamer Gamil, ABL’s country manager in Egypt, said the project demonstrated the value of combining global engineering standards with local expertise. “Our value lies in delivering cost-effective solutions through timely mobilisation of qualified resources and strong understanding of regional regulatory requirements,” he said.