Keppel Offshore & Marine Limited (Keppel O&M) through its wholly owned subsidiaries has clinched contracts worth S$200 million, or around US $139 million.

The new orders include the upgrading and conversion of a Floating, Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessel into a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading facility (FPSO Okha) by Keppel Shipyard for Single Buoy Moorings, the building of two RAmpage 5500 Z-M offshore support tugs by Keppel Singmarine for Seaways International Pte Ltd and the construction of three tugboats at Keppel Cebu Shipyard in the Philippines.

Work on the FPSO Okha is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2009 and will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2010. The facility is being developed for the Cossack Wanaea Lambert Hermes oil field 135 km northwest of Karratha in Western Australia.

The two DP2 multi tasking Anchor Handling Tugs (AHT), each with 100-tonne bollard pull, are due for completion in the first half of 2011 and will be deployed in West Africa, Asia or the Middle East. This is a repeat order from Seaways. Keppel Singmarine is currently building a similar AHT for the same owner for delivery in end 2009.

The construction of the three tugboats - two for repeat customer Keppel Smit Towage Pte Ltd and one for the Port of Salalah of Oman -- signifies the further development of Keppel Cebu Shipyard as a specialized shipbuilding yard.

Tong Chong Heong, currently Managing Director & Chief Operating Officer of Keppel O&M and Chief Executive Officer designate, said, "The new orders are a creditable wrap-up for a year in which the second half has been ravaged by very negative financial and economic factors.

"The fundamentals of the industry remain sound even though the pipeline of projects has slowed down. There are still projects in the market but we would only take on those that are cashflow positive. This prudent approach protects our shareholders' interest as well as sustains us during this highly volatile period."

Commenting on Keppel O&M's plans for 2009, Tong said, "Our focus in the new year is to further strengthen our business fundamentals through excellent project execution, robust risk and governance management and pro-active technology development.

"Our strong balance sheet and healthy orderbook in excess of S$10 billion give us the muscles to pursue our strategic goals of nurturing our people and seizing opportunities to develop new markets and technologies."

Tags: Keppel Offshore & Marine Limited