James Fisher and Sons Regulatory News (FSJ)

13 Dec 2006 11:10

Fisher (James) & Sons PLC13 December 2006 For release 13 December 2006 James Fisher and Sons plc ("James Fisher") £10m Contract Win by James Fisher Defence Submarine Rescue Vehicle for Republic of Korea Navy James Fisher Defence Limited ("JFD"), a subsidiary of James Fisher, the UK'sleading Marine Services provider ("FSJ"), announces that it has been awarded acontract to deliver a new Submarine Rescue Vehicle to the Republic of Korea Navy("ROKN") following an open competitive tender. The contract win, worth £10m over a period of 3 years, is the first since JFDacquired the UK submarine rescue service assets in November 2006 from theGovernment's Defence Sales Agency in order to provide submarine rescue servicesto other countries. ROKN selected JFD to supply and commission the new vehicle based on the qualityof the design and tender submission together with JFD's successful track recordin supporting the ROKN's existing rescue submersible, the LR5K, which hasincluded the provision of a new all-steel dry-mating skirt in September thisyear. This enabled the ROKN to achieve a dry transfer from a submarine for thefirst time for over three years. The new submarine rescue vehicle, DSAR-5, will benefit from JFD's 15 years'experience in the operation of the United Kingdom Submarine Rescue System,including the LR5 rescue submersible which was designed and built by JFD. TheDSAR-5 is capable of locking onto the escape hatch of a stranded submarine andtransferring up to 16 submariners, recovering them to the surface where therescue vehicle may interface the decompression facility onboard the"Chung-Hae-Jin", the ROKN's submarine rescue mothership. Commenting on the contract, Simon Harris, JFD Managing Director, and a directorof James Fisher, said: "Our success in winning the contract to supply the new submarine rescue vehicleto the Republic of Korea Navy is testament to the design and build capability ofJames Fisher Defence and the unrivalled reputation of our operations team. Welook forward to working closely with ROKN and delivering a world-leading rescuesubmersible." -ENDS- Contacts James Fisher Defence Simon Harris Managing Director 01229 615 400 James Fisher & Sons plc Nick Henry Chief Executive Officer 020 7338 5808www.james-fisher.co.uk James Fisher & Sons plc Michael Shields Group Finance Director 01229 615 400 Adventis Financial PR Ltd Peter Binns 020 7034 4760 Chris Steele 020 7034 4759 Editor's Notes: Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) Submarine RescueJFD enjoys an excellent working relationship with ROKN, previously supplying arange of spares and technical expertise in support of their submarine rescueoperations with their LR5K submersible. The ROKN operates LR5K from the "Chung-Hae-Jin" - a sophisticated, dedicated submarine rescue mothership incorporating a state-of-the-art below-decksdecompression facility. ROKN selected JFD to supply a new dry-mating skirt inlate 2005 following an open, competitive tender process. The skirt was deliveredin September 2006 and commissioned by JFD personnel. DSAR-5The ROKN's new DSAR-5 rescue vehicle will be based on JFD's existing LR5/DSAR-1design which is currently in-service with the Royal Navy which since being builtby JFD has completed more than 300 dives and exercised with live submarines fromnavies around the world. The DSAR-5 rescue vehicle is capable of rescuing up to 16 submariners from adepth of 500 metres in currents of up to 3 knots. Rescuees may be transferredunder pressure to the medical and decompression facilities onboard themothership. The use of Lithium based battery technology enables the underwaterendurance to be increased significantly over conventional lead-acid basedsystems. James Fisher personnel will commission the new submersible and provide trainingto ROKN pilots and maintainers. James Fisher Defence LtdJames Fisher Defence was established in January 2005, bringing together thedefence sector activities of James Fisher and Sons plc including those of JamesFisher Rumic which was formed in 1984 and was acquired by James Fisher and Sonsin 2002. In recent years the company has increased the scope of its activitiesand is actively marketing submarine rescue hardware and services to overseasnavies globally. JFD operates the United Kingdom Submarine Rescue System fromits base in Renfrew, Scotland and will operate the new NATO Submarine RescueService rescue submersible. Employing 40 full time personnel JFD has established itself as a world leader inthe provision of submarine rescue equipment and operating services, offeringcustomers proven equipment and experienced personnel with a track record ofsuccess in this demanding sub sea environment. James Fisher Defence Limited signed an agreement on 2 November 2006 with theGovernment's Defence Sales Agency to acquire the operating assets of the UK submarine rescue service, for an undisclosed amount, in order to provide submarinerescue services to other nations. The company will work closely with the DefenceExport Services Organisation to market its submarine rescue services worldwide. James Fisher Defence Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of James Fisher andSons plc (FSJ.L), the UK's leading provider of marine services. Through its subsidiary, James Fisher Rumic Ltd, the company currently operates and maintainsthe LR5 manned rescue submersible, the Scorpio ROV and ancillary equipment undera contract to the Royal Navy and has played a key role in the development of theUK's world-leading submarine rescue capability. Last year, the rescue of the seven Russian submariners drew on the support fromthe RAF, the US Navy and local Russians to fly the team and equipment from itsRenfrew base, transport it to a waiting ship, secure it to the vessel and reachthe offshore location within 36 hours. It took about 5 hours to cut thediscarded fishing nets which had trapped the mini-sub called the Priz at a depthof 625 feet off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka peninsula. This was achieved amidestimates that the Russian submariners had less than 10 hours of air left. Theteam was also previously mobilised for the Kursk submarine disaster in 2000. James Fisher & SonsJames Fisher & Sons plc, the parent company to James Fisher Defence, is aleading provider of marine services with its business divided into thesesectors. The group is a market leader in the provision of technical engineeringsolutions in the marine environment. James Fisher has four divisions: Offshore Oil Services, Marine Oil Services,Specialist Technical Services and Defence. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange