De Beers Awards Contract For Customized Diamond Exploration Ship

(IDEX Online News) – De Beers has selected Norwegian shipbuilder Kleven to build a tailor-made ship for deep sea mineral exploration off the coast of Namibia.

Kleven said the vessel would be the "first of its kind" and will work on a large area offshore where over three million years the Orange River deposited sediments containing diamonds and other valuable minerals.

“This design is well proven within the offshore construction segment, but the new build for De Beers will include a wide range of tailor made equipment and features,” Kleven said.

“Underwater mineral exploration is a new segment for Kleven, and we look forward to working closely with De Beers on the realization of this highly advanced vessel.

The shipbuilder added that its offshore experience and expertise together with De Beers' expertise and innovative strategy "led to the development of this unique vessel".

“We were contacted by De Beers over a year ago to see if we could develop a ship design to engage in diamond mining off the coast of Namibia,” said the Marin Teknikk ship design company. One of its designs serves as the basis for the vessel to be built for De Beers.

Marin Teknikk says that externally the De Beers vessel will be similar to earlier MT 6022 designs, but the internal arrangement will be different.

Below deck and the entire aft deck will be installed with equipment designed for underwater mineral activity. The vessel will be able to operate at depths of up to 150 meters, and there will be cabin space for up to 80 people in individual cabins.

The ship will be deployed offshore for up to three years at a time, with crew transfers and supplies handled by smaller vessels or helicopters.

The final subject to building approval is due to be made in the first quarter of next year, and the ship is scheduled to be delivered in June 2016.