Norwegian firms Eidesvik Offshore, a vessel owner and operator, and Reach Subsea, a subsea services contractor, have agreed to co-own and operate the subsea IMR (inspection, maintenance and repair) vessel Edda Sun.
Eidesvik will own slightly more, 50.1%, of the vessel, and will provide the technical management, crewing and operation of the vessel.
Built in 2009, Edda Sun was sold to the firms by One Ship Invest, a Norwegian investment company that has in the past leased the vessel out to Norwegian operators Fugro and Østensjø Rederi.
She will now be renamed Viking Reach and will work on a six-year contract beginning in the second quarter of this year.
“Edda Sun is a very well-suited vessel for survey and light construction projects, and will be mobilised with one Supporter WROV and one Surveyor ROV,” says Reach Subsea CEO Jostein Alendal. “Eidesvik has been a strategic partner for Reach Subsea for many years and we are pleased to strengthen our relationship with regards to co-ownership and operations. We are currently seeing record high activity in the subsea market and this joint venture represents an important step for us in terms of securing a long-term core fleet portfolio.”
The announcement of the joint venture follows Eidesvik’s announcement on February 22 that it has reached an agreement with its financial institutions on terms for refinancing the company’s debt until February 2026. The new terms will significantly strengthen Eidesvik’s financial position, and the final agreement is expected to be in place in March 2023.
“Our new financial terms will offer us a solid foundation for growing our business. The acquisition of Edda Sun is part of the company’s growth strategy and we are pleased to expand our fleet with this highly versatile vessel. We look forward to cooperating with Reach Subsea in this exciting new venture”, said Eidesvik Offshore CEO Gitte Gard Talmo.
