The tug will be 37.5m in length with a breadth of 13.5m, powered by two 2640kW (total approx - 7200bhp) main engines driving a pair of Voith Schneider cycloidal propulsion units.

ASL will built the vessel to a Svitzer-Wijsmuller design and a bollard pull in excess of 70 tonnes is anticipated. Fire fighting equipment will be installed to FiFi 1 standards (with water spray protection) and the vessel, valued at around £5m, is intended to complement the existing Liverpool fleet. No other technical information has been released to date. The introduction of this new vessel will introduce active escorting, with the escort tug made fast to the stern of the ship during the transit, to the Mersey for the first time.

Considerable work on tanker escorting has been carried out at the UK's first full active escort tug simulator installed at the Lairdside Maritime Centre in 2004. The £50,000 project, to enhance the existing 360º ship's bridge simulator, was jointly funded by Shell UK Ltd, Svitzer Marine Limited and Wirral Waterfront. The facility enables tug masters and pilots to rehearse active escort towage and berthing of oil tankers in a safe, simulated environment.

Stuart McNiven, managing director of Svitzer Marine Limited, is delighted that the order for the escort tug has been placed. 'We at Svitzer are proud to contribute further to the development of the Port of Liverpool. Last year we introduced two new 60 tonnes bollard pull tractor tugs to our Liverpool fleet and named them after areas of Liverpool:

Svitzer Bootle and Svitzer Bidston . Now we have another opportunity not only to upgrade our fleet but also to make a further contribution to the productivity, efficiency and safety of one of our major customers and to the port.

Liverpool from a Svitzer perspective now has a tug fleet which is arguably one of the best in Europe and the new Escort Tug will make it even better.'

Joe Benton, MP for Bootle said: 'I am delighted at the news that Svitzer Marine Limited is making this significant investment in a new purpose-built escort tug for its fleet of tugs on Merseyside.

This latest investment will not only upgrade the tug fleet again but also ensure smoother tanker movements at Tranmere for Shell. Both Shell and Svitzer Marine consider safety a priority and there is no doubt that active escorting of tankers at the Terminal will reduce the risk to personnel and the environment.'