Pipelay support vessel

A former North Sea pipe carrier being transformed into a versatile pipelay-support vessel will help Italy's Saipem S.p.A. in laying three 20-in gas lines across the Sicilian Channel. The new support ship, to be named Ragno Due, spans 262 ft (80 m) in length and 59 ft (18 m) in width and has a draft of 14 ft (4.3 m); twin 500-hp bow thrusters and an 800-hp stern thruster - in addition to conventional screws powered by two 2000-hp diesel engines - will enable the vessel to work in tandem with Saipem's Castoro Sei in rough seas. A moonpool amidships will deploy an existing 1000-ft-range diving bell and a new 3000-ft, 1-atm work bell now under construction by Perry Oceanographics, Inc., of Florida. Deck installations include a 100-ton-capacity crane and stern-mounted A-frame for recovering a PC-1602 submarine that will monitor underwater operations. Outfitting of the Ragno Due will be complete by early 1981.