Iceni Pride is on the pontoons at Seawork. The order demonstrates a commitment by both companies to follow the changing and ever-more demanding requirements of utility companies and their primary contractors.

The order is for two, South Catamaran 24m WFSV’s to be named Iceni Victory and Iceni Fighter,  one 19m Lock Special vessel to be named Iceni Vengeance and a further 13m vessel to be named Iceni Legend. 

Both the 24m vessels will be built under survey to DNV +1A1 HSLC R2 Wind Farm Service 1 class and UK MCA Workboat Code Category 1 flag. The vessels are fitted with twin MTU 12V2000M72 1450hp main engines coupled to Rolls-Royce 56A3 water jet units for sprint speeds in excess of 28 knots and very impressive bollard push. The vessels are to be delivered during April and November 2013. 

The South Catamaran 19m GL WFSV is a new vessel designed to the requirements of Iceni and another operator. The design criteria were to produce a vessel tailored to meet the non-class requirement within the UK; a vessel that featured high performance, reduced fuel consumption and higher levels of passenger comfort all coupled to the usual benefits expected from a South Catamaran, such as superior sea-keeping, unrivalled build quality and class leading cargo carrying capabilities. This series is powered by twin MAN V12-1200hp main engines coupled to Rolls-Royce FF600 water jets for sprint speeds approaching 30 knots. 

The South Catamaran 13m RRV WFSV is similar to Iceni Pride that is being built to fulfil a five year O&M contract. Propulsion is identical to the earlier vessel with twin Caterpillar C9 510hp engines and Hamilton HJ364 water jet units for sprint speeds approaching 30 knots. 

Ben Colman of South Boats said: “I am delighted to announce this significant order and to continue the strong relationship that South Boats has built up with Iceni Marine Services over the last three years. Iceni Marine has shown strong growth and have assisted us with our vessel development programme, providing excellent owner-operator feedback.”

Ken Turner of Iceni Marine Services said: “South Cats are superb vessels and we have had enormous success because of their abilities to meet increasingly stringent requirements from the Wind Farm Constructors and Operators. The new boats complement our range on vessels so that we can offer a complete service to our customers. We are also working with South Boats to ensure we have the right boats to handle the special requirements of Round 3 from 2015.”