Oceaneering International could acquire the US-built DMT Sapphire from an affiliate of Deep Marine Technology following its $16.5m bid.
The oil company said bids for the acquisition of the class-2 dynamically positioned vessel are scheduled to be approved on 2 June 2010 by the bankruptcy court.
The company said, if successful, it will upgrade the ship with a permanently installed on-board Oceaneering saturation (SAT) diving system, a new crane, telecommunications, video and survey equipment.
The 237ft-long DMT Sapphire is equipped with a 40t knuckle boom crane and a subsea launch and recovery winch.
It features a 150hp 10,000ft Triton XLS work-class ROV and can accommodate a crew of 36.
Oceaneering International said the DMT Sapphire should be accretive to the company’s earnings in 2011, assuming the bid is approved by the court.
