Mumbai: Garware Offshore Services Ltd is on verge of finalising a deal to buy an anchor handling tug-cum-supply vessel from Singapore for an estimated cost of $15.5 million, Sandeep P Akolkar, president-finance, said.

This buy would be over and above the company’s recent orders for five ships - three AHTSVs and two platform supply vessels - that will be delivered between June this year and February 2009.

“The deal will be finalised in one to two weeks. The vessel is scheduled for delivery in July 2009,” Akolkar said. Garware Offshore currently owns and operates a fleet of six vessels.

The company is set to foray into construction barge business that will give higher profit margins, Akolkar said.

“We have placed an order for a construction barge, scheduled for delivery in July 2009. The ship will be contracted to construction companies involved in maintenance of offshore platforms of oil exploration companies.”

The current contract rate for PSVs is around $17,5000 per day, with an operation expenditure of around $3,500-$4,000 per day, while that for AHTSVs is $10,000-$11,000 per day with an operational cost of $3,000 per day.

“The contract rate for construction barges is $30,0000-$35-000 per day with an operation cost of $5,000-$6,000 per day,” Akolkar said.

The construction barge is totally financed by a Singapore bank, which will own the vessel and lease it out to Garware Offshore.

“Even after paying the lease amount we will make $10,000-$12,000 per day on the vessel. The amount will go up when we buy out the vessel.”

Source : DNA