A voyage between Santa Catarina and Rio de Janeiro has entered recent history of Brazilian shipping. The Starnav Elektra, an offshore support vessel, completed the route with a 100% female crew, composed of 16 professionals and led by Commander Isabela Teixeira Ponce de Leon.
The operation took place before the vessel's official christening, held on September 17, at Pier Mauá, in Rio de Janeiro. Built by Detroit Shipyard, in Itajaí (SC), the Elektra is the first ship delivered under the Open Sea Program, a Petrobras initiative aimed at renewing and expanding its maritime support fleet.
The episode gained repercussion in the sector for bringing together, in a single operation, female professionals in different roles aboard an offshore vessel. For the crew members themselves, it is a historic moment and an opportunity to expand female presence in an activity traditionally marked by male predominance.
A milestone born in Southern Brazil
The story began in Santa Catarina, where the Starnav Elektra was built. The vessel received an investment of approximately R$ 450 million and was designed to support Petrobras' offshore operations.
During the voyage to Rio de Janeiro, the 16 crew members fully assumed the operation of the vessel. Under the command of Isabela Teixeira Ponce de Leon, the team navigated the ship to the location where the christening ceremony would take place.
In a post on professional networks, one of the team members, Lorrayne Vaz Coelho, highlighted the significance of that moment and described the formation as the Starnav Elektra's first 100% female crew.
Petrobras officially confirmed the composition of the team and recorded that the vessel navigated from Santa Catarina to Rio de Janeiro exclusively with women on board.
More than a crew
The symbolism of the voyage goes beyond the team's composition. The Starnav Elektra brings together two transformations that have been gaining space in the Brazilian maritime industry: the expansion of female participation and the incorporation of new technologies to offshore vessels.
The Elektra is a PSV, an acronym for Platform Supply Vessel, a type of vessel used for logistical support to oil and gas platforms. Its function includes the transport of equipment, materials, water, fuel and other supplies necessary for operations at sea.
The vessel also incorporates a hybrid energy system, combining diesel-electric engines with a battery bank. According to information released about the project, the system allows for improved energy efficiency and reduced fuel consumption and emissions during certain operational conditions.
The ship also has telemetry-based consumption monitoring systems and technologies aimed at reducing emissions.
A new image for the maritime sector
Female presence in the Merchant Marine and offshore operations has been increasing gradually, but the participation of women in embarked roles still represents a smaller portion of the sector's professional universe.
That is why an entirely female crew on an offshore support vessel draws attention not only because of the team's composition, but also because of the visibility it offers to professionals who chose to build their careers at sea.
Starnav's initiative places these professionals at the center of an operation that involves navigation, safety, machinery, logistics, maintenance and embarked routine.
More than a photograph of a specific moment, the Elektra's voyage helps show new generations that the maritime environment can also be a space for career, leadership and professional development for women.
Technology and diversity on board
The Starnav Elektra also represents a new technological stage for Brazil's maritime support fleet.
``` ```htmlBuilt in Itajaí, the PSV is the first in a series of new vessels designed for Petrobras operations. The project incorporates energy efficiency technologies and was developed as part of a movement to renew the offshore fleet and strengthen the Brazilian shipbuilding industry.
The vessel is approximately 92.1 meters in length and has the capacity to transport large volumes of materials and supplies for offshore operations.
The hybrid system uses batteries in conjunction with the vessel's generators, allowing energy generation to be managed more efficiently in certain operational situations.
A chapter that may open other paths
The Starnav Elektra now proceeds to support platforms in Brazilian oil basins. For the crew that completed the voyage to Rio de Janeiro, however, the journey has already left its own mark.
Sixteen women shared the same vessel, the same challenges and responsibilities, in an operation that gained repercussion precisely because it breaks with a traditional image of the maritime environment.
The sea remains the same. The responsibilities on board as well.
What changes is who occupies these spaces.
The voyage of the Starnav Elektra shows that the transformation of the Brazilian Merchant Marine also passes through the diversity of its professionals. And, in this case, 16 women made a point of leaving their own marks in the history of a ship that has just begun its trajectory in Brazilian offshore operations.
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