Trans Viking turns towards Alaska
Publisert mandag 18. desember 2006

Trans Viking Icebreaking & Offshore AS, a joint venture company between Rederi AB Transatlantic and Viking Supply Ships AS, has entered into a charter contract with the Finnish public shipping enterprise Finstaship for one of Trans Viking’s combined anchor handlers and icebreakers for a firm period of 6 months and 2 months options. The commencement of the contract is at the beginning of May 2007.

The vessel will be chartered for Arctic offshore duties in the Beaufort Sea, off the northern coast of Alaska. The vessel will work together with Finstaship’s own icebreaker Fennica serving Shell Offshore Inc. Shell will utilize the vessels for towing oil rigs, anchoring and maintenance work. In addition, the vessels will safeguard the rigs during drilling operations. The vessels will manage ice by keeping the ice floes that break off from the North Pole during summer away from the oil rigs to ensure safe operations. The ice floes may be several square kilometres in size.

One of the three sister vessels Tor Viking II, Balder Viking and Vidar Viking will be assigned for the duty. The vessels are tailor-made for tasks in the Arctic and areas with ice conditions such as the Beaufort Sea. Tor Viking II and the sister vessels are normally operated in the North Sea spot market during the summer season, and are breaking ice in the Baltic Sea during the winter months for the Swedish Maritime Administration when necessary.

“This contract is an important step for our company”, says Stefan Eliasson managing director of Trans Viking Icebreaking & Offshore AS, “as the offshore industry seeks new areas for exploration and production such as in the Arctic areas the need for ice breaking tonnage and expertise is growing. This is an area in which our company clearly has a competitive advantage based on our long experience from both the offshore services sector and icebreaking.”

The vessel is expected to mobilise and depart from Stavanger in early May 2007, and the transit time to location via the Panama Canal is estimated to take approximately 45 days.

For further information please contact:
Managing Director of Trans Viking Icebreaking & Offshore AS: Stefan Eliasson: + 46 304 67 47 00,

Trans Viking Icebreaking & Offshore AS
The three combined AHTS/Icebreakers Tor Viking II, Balder Viking and Vidar Viking are owned by Trans Viking Icebreaking & Offshore AS. This company is a joint venture on a 50/50 basis between Viking Supply Ships AS in Kristiansand, Norway, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kistefos AS, and Rederi AB Transatlantic in Skarhamn Sweden. Viking Supply Ships AS has the chartering and marketing responsibility for the vessels, while Rederi AB Transatlantic has the crewing and technical management. The two companies also jointly own the company Partrederiet Odin Viking DA, which is the owner of the AHTS Odin Viking.