Allseas Pioneering Spirit, the largest ship in the world, has been awarded a contract to build the 900 km Turkstream pipeline on the floor of the Black Sea. Pipe laying operations are to begin in the second half of 2017.

The vessel completed its first sea trials earlier this year in the Norwegian North Sea. It is equipped with pipelay equipment that will allow it to install record weights at depths from shallow to ultra-deep water, and has an S-lay tension capacity sof 2,000 tonnes.

“The vessel, currently in the Alexiahaven in Rotterdam, is equipped with a double-joint factory, six welding stations for double joints and six coating stations,” a spokesperson for Allseas said.