Ever since we started operating in Venezuela in 1948, HMC has been committed to meeting challenges in the offshore oil and gas industry.
1948 – 1960
Heerema started in 1948 as a small construction company near Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela. The first offshore oil drilling took place in Lake Maracaibo. The company specialized in the construction and installation of drilling platforms for the oil industry. The breakthrough came in about 1956, when Heerema developed a pre-stressed concrete pile, which proved technically and economically successful. In the following years some hundred drilling and construction platforms were placed in Lake Maracaibo and the Carribean, along with a substantial number of concrete piers, quays and bridges.
1960 - 1978
In the early 60's the emphasis shifted to the development of oil & gas fields in the North Sea. The exploration and production of oil & gas in the North Sea formed a challenge right from the beginning. Particularly during the winter months, extreme weather conditions and heavy seas posed major problems to the construction and installation activities. From 1963, the design of larger modules and jackets inspired engineers to make use of the growing capacity and stability of the crane vessels. The financial advantage for oil companies proved enormous. It enabled the construction of fewer and heavier units, which drastically reduced the offshore-hours. The oil and gas fields could produce "first-oil" more rapidly.
In 1969 we provided the capacity to lift 800 t with our ship-shaped crane vessel, Challenger. At the time this was the pinnacle of our industry. It opened the way for oil companies to achieve considerable cost reductions by constructing fewer, but heavier modules. This enabled oil companies to drastically reduce expensive hook-up costs offshore.
1978 - 1980
A basis for the next step in the development of the heavy lift capacity was the wish to even further increase the capacity of the crane vessels. The existing crane ships and barges were still quite sensitive to movements resulting from the waves. Working in the winter months proved almost impossible. The solution was sought in the application of the "semi-submersible" principle, where an important part of the hull can be submersible. As a result the vessel and construction work is less sensitive to waves. In 1978, HMC introduced the world's first semi-submersible crane vessels (SSCVs), sister vessels Balder and Hermod. Their dual-crane feature made HMC the industry leader, and the two SSCVs had an initial lift capacity of 5,400 t, which was later upgraded to 8,100 t. Installations, which until then had required a complete summer season, were completed by HMC in less than six weeks.
1980 - 1997
The initial years of the decade were fruitful. The concept of the SSCV ensured lots of work in the North Sea and offshore Brazil. The mid-80s were difficult years for the contractors in the offshore industry. As a result of the low oil prices, oil companies postponed investments. Both Heerema and McDermott and other competitors found themselves in financial difficulty and an answer was found in co-operation. In 1988 a joint venture was formed between Heerema and McDermott: HeereMac. The SSCV Thialf was added to the fleet with a current lift capacity of 14,200 t.
1997 – 2000
The year 1997 was a turning point in the history of the Heerema Group when the Heeremac joint venture was terminated and Heerema acquired the SSCV "Thialf" (ex DB-102) from McDermott. The Heerema Group now owned and operated three of the world’s five SSCVs.
The increasing industry focus on developing oil and gas fields in water depths up to 3,000 meters led the Heerema Group to acquire INTEC Engineering in 2000 and to transform the SCCV Balder into an advanced deepwater construction vessel (DCV Balder).
2002 - present
In recent years Heerema Marine Contractors has firmly established a leading position in deepwater full field development. Many remarkable projects have been executed and records have been set, particularly in deepwater.
We look forward to building a future that is at least as impressive as our past.