Norwegian broker Seabrokers has cautioned offshore vessel owners that a recent spike in anchor-handling tug supply vessel rates should not mean they get "carried away".
The company pointed out that there had been a few instances earlier this year when AHTS spot availability dropped to low levels in the North Sea.
But "owners had struggled to gain much traction for rate momentum because all the confidence had been sapped out of the market", the broker said.
"Well, it seems that some owners have regained their confidence, with several recent rig moves in the UK sector ending up with AHTS fixtures in the £30,000 ($40,200) to £55,000 range," Seabrokers added.
In Norway, there has been a long list of fixtures in the NOK 350,000 ($39,094) to NOK 750,000 bracket.
But Seabrokers warned: "It is important not to get carried away.
"While owners have been securing more lucrative fixtures than they had become accustomed to earlier this year, in some instances their vessels were fixed a week in advance of a rig move and they earned nothing in the week prior to commencement."
And the broker added: "One good month will not compensate for all of the loss-making charters from earlier in the year."
Charterers beware
Seabrokers also had a warning for charterers, however.
The company said the events of the last month should serve as a "timely reminder" that the North Sea AHTS market is not a place for complacency, especially when active supply levels are at such low levels this year.
Operational fleets have been shrinking as vessels are laid up or redeployed out of the oil and gas sector, or out of the North Sea entirely.
Norwegian Westshore Shipbrokers counts 50 platform supply vessels stacked in Norway and the UK, as well as 32 AHTSs, as opposed to 45 working PSVs and 26 operational AHTSs.
No good news
Offshore support vessel owners have also been reporting second quarter results after a dire demand situation created by Covid-19 lockdowns and oil price falls.
"The good news has understandably been in short supply this time round," Seabrokers said.
The broker identified vessel impairment as the common theme, as values are written down to reflect declining demand around the globe.
Financing questions not going away
But financial restructurings and lay-ups have also been in the headlines.
"The theme of restructuring will undoubtedly be here to stay for the foreseeable future, with many OSV owners hampered by unsustainable debt burdens," Seabrokers said.
Scorpio-backed Hermitage Offshore became the latest owner to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US, while Norway's DOF Group lost its 50% stake in AHTS joint venture DOF Deepwater in a refinancing to its partner Akastor, which now owns the five ships.
Westshore put utilisation for PSVs at 84% this week, with AHTSs on 62%.
Rates still strong for AHTSs
UK broker Braemar ACM said on Thursday that AHTS units were still attracting £30,000 per day for rig moves in the North Sea, with PSVs at £8,000, up from a low of £2,000 earlier this year.
Braemar ACM identified no open prompt PSVs in Norway, and no prompt PSVs or AHTSs in the southern North Sea.
Two AHTSs are free in Norway and a total of eight AHTSs and PSVs in Aberdeen.
Seabrokers' data for August shows an average rate of £4,175 per day for large PSVs, compared with £10,646 a year ago.
Large AHTSs averaged £32,256, little changed from August 2019, however.
Utilisation rates were 61% for PSVs last month, up from 55% in July, and AHTSs were at 63%, down from 75% the month before.
