The construction project of the cable lay vessel 'Nexans Aurora' has recently reached a new milestone, as the installation of the MAATS Tech equipment package including the carousel, loading arms, access tower and control cabin have now been completed.
All the abovementioned equipment are MAATS Tech Ltd deliveries, and employees from Maats have been working at the yard for several weeks for the installations and testing of the cable lay equipment.
The next milestone will be the heeling test. The 'Nexans Aurora' is due for delivery to Nexans this year, and her first assignments will be in the offshore wind segment.
The hull for yard number 323 arrived at Ulstein Verft on 6 December 2025. This marks another milestone in the construction of our next-generation offshore wind service vessel, which is the tenth TWIN X-STERN CSOV since 2022. The vessel is based on Ulstein’s proven SX222 design platform.
Aurora Expeditions' Douglas Mawson was officially named in Sydney on 27 November 2025 before embarking on her inaugural trip to Tasmania. This milestone marks history as the first expedition vessel featuring Ulstein’s X-BOW® design to operate in Australian waters. More than a striking visual signature, this pioneering hull shape represents a breakthrough in maritime engineering.
Guiding a nearly 150-metre-long newbuild vessel out of the dock hall with less than one metre of clearance on each side, while the wind presses from all directions, leaves no room for error. It demands meticulous planning, absolute precision, and a team that knows exactly what to do.
