Briggs Marine, a leading provider of marine services, has placed an order with shipbuilder Freire A/S of Vigo, Spain, for a new Maintenance Support Vessel which is due in service in Q4 2024. This order forms part of Briggs’ continued investment programme to renew and upgrade its fleet to maintain a high standard of vessel services for its clients.

The new vessel, measuring 40 meters in length, will form part of Briggs’ busy charter fleet. It will enhance and expand the Company’s offering across a range of industries including defence, ports & harbours, energy & utilities, construction and offshore renewable energy.

Optimally configured to support Briggs’ ongoing contracts with UK Government, offshore wind farms and commercial ports, the vessel will primarily undertake inspection, servicing and replacement of Aids to Navigation (AtoN) and heavy inshore moorings in the UK and overseas. 

The DP2 propulsion system and generous deck outfit has been specified and configured for maximum crew safety and uninterrupted service, even in arduous conditions where necessary.  The Company has specified diesel-electric propulsion to offer the best fuel efficiency possible in a wide range of applications as well as compliance with the latest and proposed future emissions standards. Importantly, the nature of machinery installation allows it to be future proofed – the ship will be able to embrace emerging technologies to utilise transitional fuels and offer drop-in battery capacity to allow zero carbon operations in some circumstances.

In addition to the primary AtoN tasks, the vessel has been designed to incorporate maximum flexibility for support of other tasks including ROV deployment, survey duties, diving, subsea investigation, seabed preparation tasks and other marine project activities.  

Amongst other features the vessel is fitted with a moonpool, a detachable ‘A’ frame, a 4-point mooring system and a survey project office. A demountable Crew Transfer Vessel (CTV) boarding ladder has also been incorporated into the design to support offshore windfarm projects.

Crew welfare is increasingly important to the Company, and accommodation is to be well appointed with noise -reduction features to enable 24/7 operations at high levels of endurance.  The vessel’s hull shape is the result of lengthy technical collaboration with the builders, Freire A/S, with the intention to provide excellent seakeeping properties and weather resilience.  Comfortable continuous operations will be possible with a permanent crew of 6 and a balance of 10 additional project personnel in well-appointed cabins.

Collieson Briggs, Managing Director said:

“This latest vessel order further demonstrates Briggs’ commitment to maintaining its position as the UK’s nearshore marine experts. The vessel will further enhance our marine project support capability for both the growing renewables sector as well as the more traditional marine construction tasks upon which Briggs has built its solid reputation”.