Ferguson Group’s accommodation service vessel, the ASV Pioneer, is ready to be deployed on its next contract having successfully completed a salvage operation support project on the Costa Concordia in the Mediterranean Sea.

The Ferguson Group, specialists in the rental of offshore DNV 2.1-1/EN12079 containers, refrigeration/freezer modules, engineering modules and accommodation solutions to the global offshore energy industry, has worked on the salvage contract since October 2012. The ASV Pioneer played a key part in supporting the salvage operation, providing offshore accommodation for up to 90 team members plus deck space for diving spread and specialist grouting equipment.

Mike Melville, Commercial Director, at the Ferguson Group, said: “After taking delivery of the ASV Pioneer in 2011, we invested in an extensive refurbishment programme for the vessel to bring it up to the highest standards, in line with our wider product range.

ASV Pioneer supporting the Costa Concordia salvage operation

“The Pioneer has already demonstrated its versatility, with its most recent involvement on the Costa Concordia Mediterranean salvage mission. The large, open deck space and the high quality accommodation offered by the ASV Pioneer demonstrated that the vessel is an extremely flexible solution for offshore projects, across a wide range of industries and many global locations.” In a previous project the vessel was equipped with an A-frame and associated carousel for a cable-laying contract in the North Sea.”

Following completion of the salvage support operation the ASV Pioneer is now berthed in the central Mediterranean and available for charter immediately.

Currently the ASV Pioneer can provide an accommodation complex for up to 120 people on-board, including two person cabins complete with en-suite facilities, galley, mess, gym, medic and recreational facilities. The vessel accommodation complex is manufactured to DNV 2.7-1/EN12079 standards and provides a large working open deck area measuring 1100m², with a load capacity of 15 tonnes/m².

The combination of the high standard accommodation and the large capacity of the deck space, which can be configured to suit a variety of industrial equipment, means that the ASV Pioneer is particularly suited to projects within the oil and gas and renewables sectors.