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GC Reiber diversifies away from oil and gas with Nexans Norway charter

GC Reiber diversifies away from oil and gas with Nexans Norway charter
In some good news for offshore operator GC Rieber Shipping it has diversified from oil and gas with a new contract for subsea vessel Polar King.

Commencing in January 2017, the 8.5-month charter will deploy the construction support vessel (CSV) on contract to submarine cable manufacturer Nexans Norway and subsidiary Nexans Skagerrak, comprising survey, trenching and cable laying activities in Norway, the North Sea and the Mediterranean. The contract comes with 18 months worth of options.

"This is an interesting contract for us with a new customer in a non-oil related segment characterised by high activity and a strong project pipeline,” said GC Reiber ceo Irene Waage Basili. “Nexans is a solid international player with a strong presence in Norway, and we look forward to cooperating with them.”

The Polar King is currently listed on GC Reiber's website as having no employment and prompt availability. It is one of three subsea vessels in the company's fleet, and a second the Polar Onyx sees its charter end in April. Its third subsea vessel Polar Queen has a charter to Boa Marine Services to April 2018.

GC Reiber has been hard hit by the offshore downturn and reported losses of $46.7m in Q4 2015, and is subsequently cutting its workforce by 25%.

Nexans Norway supplies power, telecommunications, installations and heating cables in Norway, and is a major manufacturer of offshore control cables and high-voltage submarine cables.