The global power systems company Rolls-Royce has won a contract worth over £45m from the Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Mipo Dockyard to design and equip four UT 776 CD deep-water platform supply vessels.

The contract includes options for a further two vessels of the same type.

The 4,400-tonne, 97-metre-long vessels, to be built at the Hyundai’s shipyard in Ulsan, Korea, are designed to supply equipment and services to deep-water oil and gas platforms.

Jørn Heltne, senior vice-president of ship technology offshore at Rolls-Royce, said: “Rolls-Royce UT design vessels are the benchmark in the deep-water offshore oil and gas sector, combining proven ship design with leading edge marine technology. This latest order develops our long-term relationship with Hyundai as a builder of these advanced vessels, designed to operate safely in the most challenging conditions.”

W G Choe, president and CEO of Hyundai, said: “We are extremely pleased to enter into this deep-water market segment by building offshore vessels of a world leading design from Rolls-Royce.”

The vessels, which will be delivered in 2013 and 2014, will feature a range of Rolls-Royce equipment, including a diesel-electric propulsion system that improves fuel efficiency and lowers emissions when operating at reduced power levels.

In 2011, Rolls-Royce invested £908m on research and development.