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Eversendai Offshore to move into jack-up rig construction

Eversendai Offshore to move into jack-up rig construction
Eversendai Offshore, the RAK Maritime City-based EPC fabricator and engineering concern, is aiming to create waves in the rig construction market in the Gulf, pledging to build structures at highly competitive prices and to premium quality.
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Its first rig is being constructed for Vahana Offshore, a vehicle 100% owned by founder of the Malaysia-based Eversendai Group, Tan Sri A.K. Nathan, but the company believes that its competitive package will in turn attract other rig operators to make orders in future.

“Rig construction will be primarily aimed at the operations of Vahana Offshore, a vehicle 100% owned by my father, to own and operate jack-ups,” said Narish Nathan, Eversendai Offshore ceo , speaking to Seatrade Global on Tuesday, adding that the company was studying two proposals from other operators. “We are hoping to sign deals [on construction for third parties] in December.

Eversendai Offshore was set up as the group’s oil and gas division in 2010 and opened its new yard at RAK Maritime City 18 months ago. “The market might get refreshed with our approach. I think we can do four rigs a year. At $90m [apiece], our rigs are a lot cheaper [than those built by the competition]. Quality is our first priority,” said Nathan.

Competitors Lamprell, the jack-up construction company based in Hamriyah Free Zone, and Dubai’s Drydocks World and Maritime World would be most likely to feel the heat from successful market entry of a player such as Eversendai Offshore.

Founder Tan Sri A.K. Nathan, who set up the original group in Malaysia in 1982, owns 72% of publicly listed construction company, Eversendai Corp, and is represented in the UAE by his son, Narish.

Eversendai has developed a track record in structural steel projects related to airports, stadiums, and complex buildings. It operates today in Malaysia, India, and the UAE. Eversendai Offshore has yards at Hamriyah Free Zone in Sharjah and RAK Maritime City, as well as Dubai’s Al Quoz Industrial Zone.

Eversendai Offshore intends to build two liftboats, or self-propelled, self-elevating vessels with sufficient deck space to carry equipment and supplies for maintenance and workover operations, for Vahana, and expects this will lead to other orders.

Nathan said the company would construct drilling rigs, as well as self-propelled jack-ups, which could be used by the oil and gas industry for topside fabrication work as well as accommodation.

He said Eversendai had recently invested $50m on new facilities at RAK Maritime City as well as $40m in the last 10 years on its yard at Hamriyah Free Zone. It has 2,000 personnel at Hamriyah and a total of 4,000 throughout the UAE. Nathan said the overall group had revenues of over $300m in 2013.

Eversendai’s involvement in the UAE began in 1995 with construction on the Burj Al Arab Hotel, completed five years later, for which it did the structural steel for main contractors Al Habtoor and Murray and Roberts.

It has since worked on structural elements on several buildings in the Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and the UAE, including Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall, both in Dubai. “Most of the complex structural steel in the region is built by us,” said Nathan.