Solitaire

Solitaire, the largest pipelay vessel in the world arrived on the Clyde for repairs on the 19 Sep 2008. She had just started work on the Corrib gasline off the west coast of Ireland when she ran into technical difficulties.
The ship alongside Solitaire is the supply vessel Havila Favour,which was originally named
Stirling Spey which was built at Fergusons shipyard on the Clyde.

The gas pipeline has caused quite a controversy in Ireland,enough to have a lady to start a hunger strike.

Solitaire, the largest pipelay vessel in the world, she has a pipe carrying capacity of 22000 tonnes, making her less dependent on offshore pipe supply in hostile areas. Precise manoeuvring on full dynamic positioning allows the vessel to work safely in congested areas. Her high cruising speed and lay speed make her very competitive worldwide.

The vessel has been operational since 1998 and has since steadily improved her performance. A lay speed of over 9 km a day has been achieved, operating the in-house developed Phoenix automatic welding system.

She has laid numerous deepwater pipelines and holds a deepwater pipelay record in 2775 m (9100’). Her S-lay capacity was increased in 2005 to a holding force of 1050 t, enabling her to lay the heaviest pipelines.