Technical and economic analysis of vessels and workboats for hydrographic research on the Northern Sea Route

BACKRGOUND: Growing shipping traffic, the construction of new port infrastructure, and the development of Arctic hydrocarbon resources call for more cost-efficient routine hydrographic surveys along the Northern Sea Route. A methodology for the techno-economic comparison of alternative fleet configurations can help identify the most efficient design solutions at the early design stages.

Aim

To evaluate the efficiency of hydrographic vessels and workboats by their technical and economic characteristics, including ice, depth, and wind-wave constraints, operational time windows, survey duration, and lifecycle costs, with the goal of supporting fleet composition planning for the hydrographic service.

Methods

The analysis relies on simplified mathematical modeling of vessel operations, combined with capital and operating cost estimates. The approach is demonstrated through a case study of survey operations in the Kara Sea.

Results

The productivity of a single hydrographic vessel can be matched only by deploying a large group of workboats, and building such a group is substantially cheaper. However, once operating costs are included, the unit cost of survey work turns out to be roughly the same for a vessel and for a group of workboats, regardless of the number of boats.

Conclusion

A direct comparison of technical and economic indicators is neither sufficient nor decisive when choosing the dimensions, type, and class of hydrographic vessels for service along the Northern Sea Route.